Miss Me Baby
by Mother Firefly
Summary: It's been one month since Joe's betrayal, will Nessa ever be able to forgive him? But when a man from her past shows up again she must choose which one she truly loves. Sequel to You're All I Wanna Do COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I own no one who appears in this story except for Nessa. Everyone else belongs to themselves and TNA. I hope you enjoy this! This story is the sequel to "You're All I Wanna Do", so in order to understand this story you must first read it if you haven't already. Please review and let me know what you think!**

One month after Joe betrayed her Nessa sat in her apartment, alone. After finding the letter that told her about the deal he had made with James Storm she explained to Larry what happened and he gave her some time off work so she could get her life back in order. True to his word Joe sent Jay Lethal and Petey Williams a few days after he left to get his things from her apartment. Nessa wasn't sure how Joe was doing but as far as she went...she was miserable, Chris Daniels and Allen had come over as soon as they heard and stayed with her as she cried. After assuring them that she was okay they left and she was once again all alone. Her phone ringing drew her out of her thoughts and Nessa debated whether to answer it or not but when it wouldn't stop ringing she had no choice. "Hello?" Her voice wasn't as cheery as it usually was, it almost sounded hollow.

"Nessa it's Monty...how are you?"

"I'm all right, about as good as I can be I guess." Nessa said and sighed. "I just miss him so damn much but I don't understand how he could do something like that." She admitted.

"Have you tried to contact him and ask him that?" Monty asked.

"No, I'm afraid to hear the answer. I love him still and if I were to talk to him I don't know if I'd have the will power to not just beg him to come back, you know?"

"Yeah I understand that but he's not doing much better than you are. Joe's been a pain in the ass around here, attacking and yelling at people for no reason. I know it's a long shot to ask this but...do you think you could come to the taping tonight?" He questioned.

Nessa sat there and thought about it for a minute, it would be good for her to get out of the apartment but she wasn't sure if she could handle it if she ran into Joe. "Send Andy over to pick me up." Nessa whispered and Monty laughed.

"He's actually waiting in the parking lot." Nessa stood up and looked out the window. Sure enough there stood Andy by his car waving up at her.

"Damn you Monty, what would you have done if I said no?" Nessa giggled.

"We were both prepared to beg." He admitted.

"You don't have to beg. Let me get off here so I can let him in and get ready."

"All right, see you soon. I still love you, you know?"

"I know and I still love you too." Nessa replied and hung up the phone. She raced out of the apartment and down to Andy who was holding his arms out ready for her. "Andy!" She squealed and hugged him tightly.

"Hey Nessa!" He laughed, hugging her back. "So do I have to beg you?" Andy questioned as they walked back into her apartment.

"Nope, I already told Monty I'd go. I just have to get ready." Andy nodded and Nessa went upstairs while he stayed in the living room. A while later she came back downstairs wearing a pair of tight blue jeans and a tight white spaghetti-strap tank top.

"Wow Nessa you look great!" Andy whistled when he saw her and she blushed.

"Thanks Andy, you ready to go?"

"Sure am."

**A/N: Well there it is, the much anticipated first chapter of the sequel. I hope you liked it!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Andy I think this was a bad idea." Nessa whispered the minute they got inside the Impact Zone. Her whole body was shaking with nervousness and she kept looking around to make sure Joe wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"Relax Nessa, you're just nervous. Monty and I won't let him get near you if you don't want him to." Andy assured her.

"That's the problem...I think I want him to." She mumbled as they made their way to Monty's locker room.

"Hey Monty! Look what the cat drug in." Andy laughed, pointing to Nessa.

"Oh hush Andy." Nessa said, smacking him in the back of the head. "Monty!" She yelled, running and jumping in his arms.

"Nessa I've missed seeing you around here." Monty stated as he hugged her.

"I've missed being here, I'm thinking about telling Larry that I want to come back."

"Are you sure you want to do that yet?" Andy asked, concerned.

"I don't know..." A knock on the door cut her off and she shot a worried glance to Monty.

"Go in the bathroom until I find out who it is." He whispered and she scampered into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her leaving it open a little so she could hear who it was.

"So where is she?" Allen's voice greeted her ears and she screamed. "Never mind." He laughed as Nessa threw the door open and ran over to him, hugging him. "Hey Nessa, how are you?"

"I'm okay. Where's Chris?"

"Waiting for me in his locker room, you want to go see him?"

"Hell yeah I do!" Nessa exclaimed. "You two want to come with us?" She asked Monty and Andy.

"No, you go on and visit him. We'll catch up with you guys later." Monty stated.

"Okay." Allen took Nessa's hand and they headed out the door. As they were walking to Chris' locker room Nessa heard something that made her freeze in her spot.

"Ness?"


	3. Chapter 3

She knew that no one else called her 'Ness' except for one person, slowly Nessa turned around and saw Joe standing there looking at her in shock. "Hi Joe." She whispered.

"Hey...how are you?" To say that things were awkward between them was an understatement. Nessa stood there clinging tightly to Allen's hand as she looked shyly at Joe.

"I'm okay. How are you doing?" Part of her was hoping that he was doing good but there was a small part of her that wanted him to be as miserable as she was.

"I'm about the same. It's good to see you again...you look good."

"Thanks. So do you, I wish I could stay and talk but Allen and I have to go see Chris." She wanted to get away from him before she ended up making a fool out of herself and begging him to come home.

"Okay. If you have time later would you stop by and see me?" He asked and she could see the hopefulness in his eyes.

"I..."

"Why don't you walk with us to Chris' locker room?" Allen spoke up and Nessa shot him a dirty look to which he just smiled innocently at her.

"If you guys don't mind." Joe said, looking straight at Nessa.

"It's fine." For some reason she wasn't able to take her eyes off of him. It was as if he was even sexier than the last time she had seen him.

The three of them walked the rest of the way to Chris' locker room, Nessa completely aware of Joe's presence beside her...her senses heightened every time she was around him. She shivered involuntarily as she thought back to how much her senses were heightened each time they made love. Taking a chance she stole a look at Joe and found him looking back at her, when their eyes met it was like he knew exactly what she was thinking about and he winked at her causing her to blush. Allen knocked on Chris' door then they walked inside.

"Nessa!" Chris exclaimed, jumping up from the couch and hugging her. "What's he doing here?" He whispered in her ear when he spotted Joe.

"He spotted Allen and I in the hall and Allen invited him to walk with us." Nessa whispered back.

"Go talk to him...Allen and I can wait until later to talk to you." Chris urged her.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Chris replied and she nodded. Nessa turned back to Joe and smiled at him a little.

"Want to go get something to eat with me?"

"Yeah." The two of them walked out of the locker room and headed to catering. "So are you back for good or just for a visit?"

"I'm not sure yet, I miss being here and I miss everyone but I'm not sure if I'm ready." Nessa admitted. When they got into catering Nessa spotted James Storm and growled. "Excuse me a minute Joe." Before he could stop her she walked a purpose over to James and tapped him on the shoulder. When he turned to face her Nessa slapped him hard across the face.

"What the hell was that for?" James yelled, holding the side of his face.

"For ruining my life and taking the one person away that I loved more than life itself!" The realization hit him when he looked over her shoulder and saw Joe standing there that she knew all about the deal he made.

"Ness I'm..."

"First of all don't ever call me Ness, Joe's the only one who can do that. Second of all don't you dare even fucking try to apologize...we are so far past that. You didn't think I would ever find out did you? You thought that when Joe and I broke up that your secret was safe, right? Wrong! He told me _all_ about it and even though I was pissed at him for accepting the deal I'm able to forgive him, you though...well let me just say this if you value living you'll steer clear of me. Got it?" She hissed, her voice dangerously low.

"Hey! You can't threaten me like that." He turned to Chris Harris who was sitting at the table watching everything. "Did you just hear that? She just threatened me!"

"I didn't hear a damn thing man." Chris said, shrugging. With a satisfied smile and a nod to Chris Nessa turned and walked back over to Joe who had already got them both something to eat and a table.

"Feel better?" He asked once she sat down.

"Much...I meant what I said though I do forgive you."

"You do?"

"Yes I do. I still love you and nothing is ever going to change that, it's going to take a while for me to be able to trust you again but I'm willing to work on it if you are." Nessa stated, looking directly in his deep brown eyes.

"I am." He whispered and she started eating. "Hey Ness?" She looked up at him and he smiled evilly.

"What?"

"Come here." Before she even realized what was happening she was across the table and in his lap. "Those words still have the same effect on you I see." He said, chuckling.

"Shut up and kiss me."

"No need to tell me twice." Just as she was about to say something else he tangled his hand in her hair and brought her mouth to his in a fiery passionate kiss that still was able to send her head spinning.

"Take me to my place?" She questioned when the kiss ended and he nodded. Without even saying goodbye to anyone the two of them left the arena and went to her apartment where they spent the night making up for lost time.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N; I want to apologize ahead of time if this chapter isn't as good as all the rest, especially the ending because I was a little drunk as I finished it.**

The next morning Nessa woke up and found that she was alone, immediately she thought that everything was a dream until she looked over to the other side of the bed and saw a note lying on the pillow. Suddenly she got a flashback to the night she found out about the deal and reached out a shaky hand to grab the note.

_Dear Ness,_

_First off...don't freak out like I know you're doing, this note isn't going to be like the last one I promise. I woke up early and thought it would be best if I left, I know that sounds harsh but I don't want to rush you into a relationship again because I know it's going to take a hell of a long time before you can trust me again so I want to take this slow. I still love you and want to be with you - nothing will ever change that. Call me once you get done reading this because I want to set a time up for me to pick you up tonight so I can take you out to dinner...I realized as I was writing this that we rushed into our relationship the last time and never went on a real date. I think it's time we change that, don't you? Remember that I love you babe and call me!_

_Love, _

_Joe_

Nessa sighed in relief as she folded up the note and grabbed her cell phone of the stand beside her bed. She dialed Joe's number and waited for him to answer.

"Hello?"

"Hey Joe it's Nessa."

"Hey babe! You got my note then?" He asked.

"Yeah and you were right...I did start to freak out." She said, giggling and he laughed.

"I knew you would, that's why I told you to stop. Are you agreeing to a date with me?"

"Of course I am baby. When have I ever said no to you?" Nessa teased him.

"Good point. I'll pick you up at eight then?"

"Sounds fine to me. I'll see you then."

"All right...I love you Ness." Joe stated.

"I love you too Joe." She hung the phone up, got off the bed and searched through her closet. Not satisfied with anything she had Nessa decided to go shopping for the perfect outfit to wear on her date that night. Before she left though she thought it best to call Joe and see if they were going somewhere fancy or not.

"Hello?"

"Baby it's me again, are we going anywhere fancy? I need to go buy a new outfit so I need to know what to buy."

"Yeah we are but you don't have to buy something new." Joe assured her.

"I know I don't _have_ to but I want to."

"All right, I'll see you tonight."

"You sure will. Love you baby." Nessa said.

"Love you too Ness." She got dressed and went to Saks Fifth Avenue where she found the perfect dress. Time seemed to creep by and it drove Nessa crazy so she settled on taking a shower and fixing her hair. Finally it was 7:30 and she slipped into her dress, just as she hit the bottom of the stairs the doorbell rang. Nessa took a deep breath and opened the door suddenly wishing that she hadn't as Chris Sabin stood there staring at her with cold, evil eyes.

"All dressed up for me?"


	5. Chapter 5

Nessa stood there staring at Chris in shock, she couldn't believe he actually had the balls to show up at her place knowing that there was a restraining order against him. "What the fuck do you want?"

"Miss me baby?" He asked, pushing his way into the apartment even though she tried with all of her strength to block him.

"Hell no I didn't! Now answer me, what the fuck do you want?"

"That's a simple question Nessa...I want you." Chris stated and she laughed.

"Well dream on Sabin because you're not getting me."

"Oh but see, that's where you're wrong I want you and I always get what I want."

"Not this time you don't fucker!" Joe growled from behind him and Nessa sighed in relief as she looked over Chris' shoulder and saw Joe standing there.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Chris yelled, turning to face Joe.

"Well damn, did I forget to mention the fact that I have a date with Joe tonight?" Nessa asked, faking innocence.

"I thought you two broke up!"

"We did...but you know what they say, if you love someone let them go and if it's meant to be they'll always find their way back. Guess what Chris? Joe and I found our way back to each other." Chris lunged for Nessa but Joe grabbed him before he could get too close.

"Don't even think about putting your hands on my girl. Ness call Officer Miller and tell him to get over here." Joe instructed.

"Yes Daddy." Nessa said, giggling and going to get the phone.

"Hey I like the sound of you calling me that." Joe laughed causing Nessa to giggle even more. Finally she calmed down enough to call the police.

"This is Officer Miller speaking, how may I help you?"

"Officer Miller this is Nessa Callahan...the one with the restraining order against Chris Sabin."

"Ah yes. How are you Miss Callahan?" He questioned.

"Not good actually. My boyfriend Joe currently has a hold of Chris Sabin who is standing in my living room."

"He broke the restraining order then?"

"Yes." Nessa replied.

"Give me ten minutes and I'll be there with back-up."

"Thank you very much Officer Miller." Nessa hung up the phone and turned back to Joe.

"Well Daddy...he'll be here in about ten minutes with back-up to take Mr. Sabin here to jail then we can get on with our evening."

"Sounds good."

Ten minutes later sirens could be heard as they pulled into the parking lot of Nessa's apartment building then there was a knock on the door. She got up off the couch to answer it and saw Officer Miller standing there.

"He still here ma'am?"

"Yes. Right there." Nessa said, pointing to where Joe was standing still holding on to Chris so he couldn't get away. Officer Miller nodded and walked in with two other Officers trailing behind him. They placed Chris in handcuffs after a bit of a struggle and drug him out of the apartment. "Well that was a great way to start off the night don't you agree?" She asked, looking at Joe who just stared at her. "What?"

"You look absolutely beautiful." He whispered, stepping closer to her and she blushed.

"Thanks, you look pretty sexy yourself."

"Don't I always?"

"That settles it...no more spending time around Chris, he's starting to rub off on you." She stated and laughed.

"Thanks babe, thanks a lot."

"Oh relax I'm just joking. Of course you always look sexy, now can we get out of here before your head swells any more than it already has?"

"But babe...I thought you liked it when my head swelled? I mean after all you weren't complaining last night." Joe said and smirked at the shocked look on her face.

"That is completely beside the point I'll have you know! Now let's get out of here before I end up making you take me upstairs." Joe laughed, took her hand and led her out to his car. "So where are we going?"

"I figured that I would take you to Ciao Italia...that okay with you?"

"Baby that place is expensive!" Nessa gasped.

"Don't even start that shit, you know better than to argue with me when it comes to that." She sighed, he was right when it came to money there was no reason to argue because he always got his way.

"Yes Daddy."

"You know I could get used to that." He chuckled as they pulled into the restaurant. Nessa couldn't believe how beautiful it was once they got inside, the place was absolutely magnificent.

"My god this place is beautiful." She whispered.

"I knew you'd like it." They got their table and when she picked up the menu her jaw almost hit the floor.

"Joe this is too..."

"Don't even finish that sentence Ness. Let's just enjoy this evening without you worrying about the prices."

That's exactly what they did, they sat eating their dinner and talking about everything that happened between them. Nessa told Joe how betrayed and hurt she felt when she found out about the deal he made with James Storm. Joe apologized again and explained that he agreed to the deal before he knew her and fell in love with her. By the time he dropped her off back at her apartment Nessa was completely head over heels in love with him again.

"Aren't you coming up?" She asked as they sat in the parking lot of her apartment building.

"Not tonight babe. Like I said in the note...I don't want to rush you into anything again because I know it's going to take a lot for you to trust me again and if I go up there tonight I'm never going to want to leave." Joe admitted.

"I understand. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Of course you will. I love you Ness."

"I love you too Joe." Nessa said and kissed him. She got out of the car and walked into her building without looking back because she knew if she did she'd be running back to him and begging him to come in. That night Nessa fell asleep with a smile on her face.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Okay I know it's been a few days since I last updated and I do apologize but I had a bit of writer's block. I finally decided that the good thing about fanfiction is that you can speed up time and still make it work, so even though in reality You're All I Wanna Do just ended a couple of weeks ago I'm making it out as if it ended a month ago. That may sound confusing right now but once you read the chapter you'll understand exactly what I'm talking about. Again I apologize to all the faithful readers and reviewers that I have that this has come so late. I hope you enjoy this! Please review. Now on to the chapter!**

The next week Nessa sat nervously in Larry's office...no one knew she was there except for him, not even Joe. She was going to make her re-debut at the tapings tonight and she was extremely excited but also nervous about how Joe would react.

"So are you ready to do this?" Larry asked.

"I'm ready, I guess I'm just afraid of the way Joe's gonna react when he sees me."

"He doesn't know about you coming out during the match?"

"No one knows...I decided to keep it a secret." Nessa explained and Larry nodded.

"You know what you're supposed to do though right?"

"Oh yeah."

"Great. He just made his way to the ring so why don't I walk you to the tunnel?" He suggested and she smiled.

"I'd like that." The two of them left his office and walked to the tunnel, making sure no one saw her as she stayed hidden in the shadows watching the match on the monitor. Nessa couldn't stop the smile that spread across her face as she watched Joe, he was flawless and so focused.

The minute she saw him struggling with Sonjay on the top rope she took a deep breath and with a nod of encouragement from Larry she raced out the tunnel. The crowd spotted her and went crazy but she was only focused on the job at hand as she ran down to the ring, placed her hand on Sonjay's back and shoved him up towards Joe who quickly got him in the Musclebuster and got the win.

Nessa was supposed to leave right after he got the pin but she couldn't. She just moved to the top of the ramp and watched as he fought with Chris Daniels. The security guards were holding him back and he was struggling to get free, his eyes full of rage. Nessa ran down to where he was, stood in front of him and placed her hand on the side of his face. "Let him go." She told the security guards and they just looked at her like she was crazy. Immediately her face changed to match the same look on Joe's face and she turned to them. "I said let him go!" Finally the guards relented and let go of him.

"You're back?" He whispered, grabbing a handful of her hair and making her look up at him.

"I'm back." Joe growled deep in his throat and kissed her roughly. They made their way to the back where Monty and Allen were waiting on them. "Damn I'm in trouble." Nessa giggled.

"Damn straight you are! Why the hell didn't you tell us?" Allen demanded.

"Fuck, she didn't even tell me." Joe laughed and they all looked at her.

"He's right...I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Well it was. It's good to have you back Nessa." Monty said, hugging her.

"Vanessa Callahan!" Chris Daniels yelled from behind her and she ducked behind Joe.

"Hide me baby, he used the full name...I'm in deep shit."

"Get your ass out from behind him and face the music." Allen warned her and she sighed, stepping out from behind Joe.

"Chris I..." Before she could even finish he grabbed her, spinning her around in a bear hug. "Okay Chris...gonna puke all over your bald head if you don't stop spinning me." Nessa groaned and he laughed.

"What the fuck was that all about?" Chris asked once he sat her down.

"I'm officially back as Joe's valet."

"No shit! When did this happen?"

"I called Larry and told him I wanted to come back...he was the only one who knew it." Nessa stated.

"Well damn, I'm glad to have you back. Now maybe the grizzly bear will go back into hibernation." He laughed, pointing at Joe.

"Watch it Chris, that's my grizzly bear you're talking about." Nessa said and Joe chuckled.

"So I'm a grizzly bear now huh?" Joe asked, stepping up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Yeah but you're mine."

"Well why don't we go to your place and we'll see if this grizzly bear can make you scream his name?" He whispered in her ear and she shivered.

"Uhm guys...you know I love you but...we gotta go!" She grabbed Joe's hand, dragging him to his locker room to get his stuff then they went to her apartment to spend the night together.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Okay just like I said in the A/N that I sent out I wasn't going to update this story for a while unless I got inspired to do so and well...I got inspired. I think once you read this chapter you'll understand why but it does give off a MAJOR spoiler for the Thursday edition of Impact so that's just a fair warning. **

The next morning Nessa woke up to the phone ringing. She growled and grabbed it off the night stand. "Hello?"

"Vanessa? It's Larry...I couldn't get a hold of Joe at his house so I took a chance, would he happen to be there?" Larry asked.

"Yeah he is, hang on." Nessa covered the phone with her left hand and turned to Joe. "Baby wake up." When he didn't budge Nessa giggled a little and poked him in the side causing his eyes to shoot open.

"...the fuck?" Joe mumbled, turning to look at her.

"Larry's on the phone for you." She explained, holding the phone out to him. He nodded and took the phone. Deciding to give him some privacy Nessa got up and went to the bathroom.

"YES!" Joe yelled from the bedroom and Nessa ran out to see what was going on.

"Joe? What the hell is going..." Before she could even finish the question she was in his arms, up in the air and he was spinning her around, laughing. "Joe, what the hell?"

"I get my title back!" Nessa looked down at him in shock.

"You...are you...you get your title back?" She finally managed to ask.

"Yes! Oh god babe I am so happy." Joe stated, sitting down on the bed and pulling her with him.

"So am I, it's about time they put the belt back where it rightfully belongs."

"You're damn straight." He said, kissing and sucking on her neck.

"In the mood for celebrating are you?" She giggled. Instead of answering her Joe flipped her onto the bed so that he was on top of her and proceeded to make love to her.

"Babe?" Joe asked as they were lying in bed together after making love.

"Yeah?"

"Do you love me?"

"What kind of question is that Joe? Of course I love you, you know that." Nessa said, looking at him.

"You know I love you too, right?"

"Yes I do...Joe what's going on? What's with all the questions?" Without saying a word Joe got out of bed, grabbed something out of his bag and walked back over to the bed. Nessa watched him with curious eyes as he sat down in front of her, looking extremely nervous all of a sudden. "I've been wanting to do this for a while now..." Joe trailed off and showed her a small ring box.

"Joe what are you doing?"

He opened it and took a deep breath. "Vanessa Michelle Callahan will you marry me?"

**A/N: Okay...wow! That came out of no where, I was _so_ not expecting that to happen right now but as I was writing this chapter it kind of took on a mind of it's own and decided that this is the way it wanted to go. I hope you enjoy it and I will try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible so you'll get to find out Nessa's answer! Please review and let me know what you think about the chapter and what her answer should be! Also if you have any ideas or suggestions for the story I'm more than happy to hear them. **


	8. Chapter 8

Nessa stared down at the ring that Joe held in his hand, unable to process what had just happened.

"Ness?" He asked, worry evident in his voice at the fact that she had yet to say anything. "Ness, babe say _something_." Joe pleaded with her. Finally she looked at him with tears in her eyes.

"Are you serious about this Joe?"

"I've never been more serious about anything in my life. I realize that I have fucked up royally where our relationship is concerned and I apologize for that but I want to spend the rest of my life with you. So will you marry me?" He asked once again.

This time without hesitation a smile spread across Nessa's face and she kissed him gently on the lips. "Of course I will baby! I love you so much."

"I love you too Ness...more than you'll ever know." Joe whispered as he slipped the ring on her finger. Nessa couldn't believe how perfect the ring fit her and she looked at Joe questioningly.

"The night I stayed here the last time I found one of your rings and took it with me when I bought this one." He explained and she nodded.

"I have to call Chris and Allen." Nessa stated, plucking the phone off the night stand.

"Babe why don't you just invite them and Monty to dinner here? We can tell them together." Joe suggested and she smiled.

"You know what? That sounds like a really good idea." She dialed Chris' number and waited for him to answer.

"Hello?"

"Chris? It's Nessa."

"Hey! What's up? Everything okay?" He asked.

"Everything's fine...Joe and I were wondering if you would come to dinner here tonight? We're inviting Monty and Allen too."

"Sure, I'd love to. What's going on?"

"You'll find out when you get here." Nessa said, not wanting to give anything away.

"All right. What time then?"

"About seven."

"Okay see you then." They said their goodbyes then she dialed Allen's number.

"Hey Nessa!" Allen greeted her and she laughed.

"Damn your caller ID. Anyway, Joe and I were wondering if you could come to dinner? Chris is already coming and I have to call Monty after I talk to you."

"Sure, sounds good."

"Great! See you at seven then." Nessa stated. He hung up the phone and she dialed Monty's number.

"Hello?"

"Monty it's Nessa. Joe and I were wondering if you wanted to come to dinner tonight? Chris and Allen are coming too."

"Yeah, I'd love to." Monty replied.

"Okay. Be here around seven."

"All right I will." She hung up the phone and smiled at Joe.

"They're all coming at seven. You sure you want to do this?"

"Of course I do babe, I love you and want to be with you for the rest of my life. Why...don't you want to?" Joe asked and she could hear the worry in his voice.

"Yes I do. I love you too." They shared a kiss then got ready for the dinner party that they were having that night.


	9. Chapter 9

It was 6:55 and Nessa's hands were shaking with nervousness as she sat on the couch with Joe.

"Babe calm down, everything's gonna be okay." Joe assured her.

"I know...I'm not even sure why I'm nervous. It's not like these guys are total strangers to me." The doorbell rang, Nessa took a deep breath and got up to answer it.

"Hey Nessa...you look good." Allen commented as he, Chris and Monty walked into the apartment.

"Thanks. It's good to see you guys."

"Good to see you too Nessa." Monty stated, hugging her.

"You guys come on in and have a seat, we'll go check on dinner." Joe said, taking Nessa's hand and leading her into the kitchen. The two of them got dinner on the table then Nessa went to go get the three guys.

"Time to eat boys!" They all walked back into the kitchen and sat down.

"So what's this all about?" Chris questioned.

"Well...as you know Joe gets his title back at the next Impact taping. We were talking and Joe asked me..." Nessa trailed off and looked over at Joe.

"Asked you what?" Monty questioned.

"I asked her to marry me." Joe stated. Jaws all across the table fell to the floor and Nessa couldn't help giggling.

"You did?" Allen asked, once he was able to register it all.

"Yes he did and I accepted."

"Oh wow! This is a cause for celebration then!" Monty laughed, grabbing more beers out of the fridge.

"When are you getting married?" Chris asked.

"Not sure yet...we did just get engaged after all." Nessa giggled.

"True. You'll let us know when you decide though, won't you?" Allen questioned.

"Of course I will, you guys are like my family and I want you to be there. You guys want to go watch a movie?"

"Sounds good to me. What are we watching?"

"How about Mary Reilly?" Nessa suggested.

"What the hell is that?" Monty asked, confusion written all over his face.

"It's a very interesting take on the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." Nessa explained.

"Let's go check it out then." Chris stated. The five of them walked into the living room and after a few minutes of fighting about who gets to sit where they finally sat down to watch the movie. About two and a half hours the movie ended Chris, Allen and Monty left leaving only Joe and Nessa sitting on the couch.

"So are you staying the night tonight?" Nessa asked.

"If you want me to."

"I do. I actually...no, never mind."

"No, tell me. Please?" Joe pleaded with her.

"I actually want you to move back in with me...if you want that is."

"As long as you're sure that's what you want then I'd love to." Nessa smiled, took his hand and led him upstairs where they made love well into the night.


	10. Chapter 10

The next week at the Impact Zone Nessa and Joe were in his locker room getting ready for his match. He was up first that night with his match against Chris Daniels where he got his title back. "You ready to do this babe?" Joe asked.

"Of course I am. The title's coming back where it belongs." Nessa stated, wrapping her arms around his waist and placed a feather light kiss on his chest.

"You really think the title belongs with me?"

"Yes I do, I mean, granted Chris and Allen are my friends but you are the best wrestler that they have in the X-Division."

"That makes me feel really good to hear you say things like that, I hope you know that." Joe said.

"I'm only telling you the truth Joe. I'm not just saying this stuff because you're my fiancee, I'm saying because it's true." The knock came on the door before he could respond and they smiled at each other. "Time to go get your title back baby."

The two of them walked to the tunnel and saw Chris standing there smiling at them. "Ready to do this big man?"

"Of course I am." Joe's music started and he turned to Nessa. "Ready babe?"

"Yeah but I'm gonna do something new out there tonight so just go along with me." She stated and Joe nodded. They walked out of the tunnel and stood at the top of the ramp. "Joe?" Nessa whispered and when he turned to face her she grabbed both ends of the towel around his neck and pulled him towards her. With one hand she held onto the towel as she kissed him and with her other hand she ran her fingernails down his chest, feeling the goose bumps form beneath her fingers causing him to growl softly in her mouth. She ended the kiss and with a satisfied smile on both of their faces they walked down to the ring.

Chris made his way down to the ring after Joe was standing inside and he winked at Nessa who shot him a disgusted look.

"Daniels! Get away from my girl!" Joe yelled. Chris just laughed and climbed inside the ring. The match was a pretty long one and went back and forth quite a lot with both men gaining control at one point or another. It finally ended when Joe hit Chris with the Island Driver and got the pin. Nessa screamed in joy and jumped in the ring to check on Joe who was still lying on the mat.

"You did it baby! You brought the title home!" Nessa told him. Joe slowly sat up and looked at the X Division title that was draped across his waist in shock and relief. She helped him stand up along with the referee and he pulled her into his arms as he held the title above his head. "Let's go celebrate." Nessa whispered and he chuckled.

"Sounds like a good idea to me." They made their way to the back where Allen and Chris were waiting on them.

"Hey man, good match out there." Chris said, shaking his hand.

"Thanks...you too."

"You guys coming out tonight?" Allen asked.

"Nah, I think we're just going to stay in and watch a movie." Joe stated and Chris laughed.

"Look at that...acting like an old married couple already and they aren't even married yet."

"Oh shove it Chris." Nessa growled playfully. The four of them laughed as they walked down the hallway to Joe's locker room. "You guys can hang out with me in here if you want until Joe gets done taking his shower." She suggested.

"I was going to wait until we got home to take a shower." Joe spoke up.

"Uhm, how about...no? You're all sweaty and stinky so there's no way I'm letting you in _my_ truck." Nessa teased, shoving him lightly towards the shower.

"Well, I love you too Ness." He laughed.

"I know you do and I love you." She giggled, grabbing his bag and placing it in his hands. "That still doesn't mean I'm letting you in my truck without a shower first baby." He shook his head and after giving her a gentle kiss he went into the bathroom to take a shower.

"So have you guys started making any wedding plans yet?" Chris asked.

"Not yet, I mean it's only been a week since we got engaged."

"Yeah that's true."

"I do want to ask you guys something though."

"What is it Nessa?" Allen questioned.

"Well since I really have no family but you guys and I can't choose between the two of you I was wondering if you would both consider giving me away."

"We'd love to." Chris answered for both of them and Allen nodded.

"I love you guys so much!" Nessa said, hugging them both. The bathroom door opened and Joe walked out to see Nessa hugging Chris and Allen.

"Now I know the real reason you wanted me to take a shower." He teased and they all laughed. "Did you ask them?"

"Yeah and they agreed." Nessa stated and he smiled.

"Good. Well, I took a shower so am I allowed to get in your truck now?" Before Nessa could answer him her cell phone rang and she sighed.

"Hello?"

"Nessa it's Chris Sabin...please don't hang up."

"Okay I won't, what do you want?" She asked.

"I'm just calling to apologize for everything. I know that won't bring Harley back and you will never know how bad I feel about that but there's nothing I can do about it except apologize and hope you forgive me."

"How do I know you're not just doing this so I'll drop the charges?" The minute she said that she saw Chris, Allen and Joe all tense up but she shook her head and waved them off.

"I guess you really don't...look I'm right outside the building so would you consider coming out here to talk to me?" He questioned.

"I don't know Chris." Nessa hesitated.

"Please? I promise that I won't do anything to you." Chris pleaded with her and she sighed.

"All right, give me a few minutes."

"Okay. See you soon." Nessa hung up her cell phone and put it in her purse.

"What did he want?" Joe snapped.

"To apologize." She replied, standing up and walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Allen asked.

"He's out in the parking lot and he wants to talk to me. Before you guys say no just listen...you can be right inside the door and if there's any trouble I'll scream."

"No, absolutely not!" Joe exclaimed.

"Joe, baby, I'll be fine I promise." Nessa assured him, kissing his lips softly. Joe sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"All right but if anything goes wrong just scream and the three of us will come running." She nodded and the four of them headed to the exit.


	11. Chapter 11

Nessa took a slow deep breath as she walked out the exit door and saw Chris Sabin standing beside her truck, when he saw her he smiled.

"I didn't think they'd let you come alone."

"It took a lot of convincing."

"I really am sorry Nessa...I don't know what came over me and made me do all that shit. It was like when I saw that you were happy with Joe something snapped inside me because I wasn't the one who was able to make you as happy as he has." Chris explained.

"Chris you did make me happy as a friend but as a boyfriend...we just didn't have anything in common and there was no way that we could've ever worked out."

"I know and that drove me crazy because in the short time we were together, I fell in love with you." Nessa gasped at the revelation that he loved her.

"My god Chris! I had no idea, I'm so sorry." She whispered.

"It's not your fault. You didn't do anything wrong at all unless you count the fact of being a beautiful woman inside and out wrong." Nessa was about to say something else but 'Pearl Necklace' by ZZ Top flooded through the night air and she giggled at the shocked expression on Chris' face after hearing a little bit of the song.

"Hello?"

"Ness is everything okay?" Joe questioned.

"Everything's fine baby, we're just talking."

"Tell him they can come out if they want." Chris spoke up.

"Joe you, Chris and Allen can come on out but you have to promise me that you won't attack Chris." Nessa said.

"We promise as long as he doesn't start anything with any of us."

"He won't." She hung up the phone and smiled at Chris. "They promised not to attack you as long as you don't provoke them."

"I'm not going to do that." Chris stated and she nodded.

"I know." Nessa felt two strong arms wrap around her waist and smiled. "Hey baby."

"Hey babe, Chris." Joe growled and Nessa elbowed him in the stomach.

"What are you doing here Sabin?" Allen snapped.

"I came to apologize to Nessa...I know that you guys may not believe that or be willing to forgive me just yet but I am telling the truth."

"Is he?" Joe whispered to Nessa and she nodded against his chest.

"I can tell when he's lying and he's not right now." Nessa whispered back and Joe sighed.

"All right Sabin, I'm not speaking for Jones or Daniels but as for myself I believe you...let me just say though if I feel that you are lying to us or trying to hurt my girl again I won't hesitate to destroy you." Joe promised and Chris nodded.

"That's fair." He turned to look at Allen and Chris waiting for a response for them.

"I'm with Joe." Allen spoke up and Chris agreed.

"Why don't we go back to mine and Joe's place to hang out for a while?" Nessa suggested and they all thought that was a good idea. "Joe and I will take my truck back and you guys can follow us." The five of them made their way to Joe and Nessa's apartment and went inside.

"So what's going on with you two?" Sabin asked Nessa while they were getting beers for everyone.

"We just got engaged actually, haven't really set a date yet since it just happened. We're not looking into rushing into it."

"Yeah I guess that's a good idea. Nessa...I really want you to know that I am sorry for everything I did. When I was in jail it gave me time to think about everything and made me realize what an asshole I was being, that's not me and we both know that."

"I know Chris, that's what hurt me so much about it all. I enjoyed having your friendship and I couldn't believe that you would do something like that."

"I couldn't either actually, I truly am sorry." Sabin whispered. Nessa smiled and gave him a hug.

"I forgive you Chris. It's all in the past now so let it go." Before she could say anything else he broke down in tears.

"Ness is everything..." Joe trailed off when he saw Nessa holding Sabin as he cried, slowly and quietly he backed out of the room with a smile on his face.

"It'll be okay Chris, I promise." Nessa whispered, stroking his back. "Everyone has forgiven you and none of us are holding anything you did against you."

"Not even you?"

"Especially not me."


	12. Chapter 12

It was the Sunday night of Lockdown and Nessa was extremely nervous...Joe was going to be facing Sabu and no matter how she looked at it she knew it wasn't going to be pretty. Her hands were shaking and her heart was racing even though Joe was the one that was actually in the match.

"Ness?" Joe whispered, seeing that her hands were shaking like leaves.

"Yeah?"

"You okay?"

"I'm fine, why?" She questioned and he laughed a little.

"Oh just for the simple fact that you're shaking like crazy...babe I'm gonna be okay, I promise. I can handle anyone and anything that they throw at me, you should know that by now."

"I do Joe it's just that...it's fucking Sabu. The guy's insane and willing to do anything in a match, hell you saw the match he had with Abyss at Turning Point last year." Nessa said, speaking of the barbed wire massacre and wincing as the visuals of that match came flooding back in her mind.

"I know Ness but our match is nothing like that."

"True but I still worry and I have every right to."

"Yes you do but you also need to have faith in my ability in the ring." Joe pointed out.

"You know I do, I have faith in you in every aspect of life but I'm just scared of you getting hurt." She admitted and he pulled her in his lap.

"I'll be fine, trust me."

"Always." Nessa whispered, giving him a gentle kiss on the lips. The knock came on the door letting him know that his match was up and Nessa shuddered. She stood up, straightened her black leather skirt and blue corset tank top that matched his trunks and they made their way to the tunnel.

Joe gave her one last kiss as his music started up and Nessa quickly wiped away a stray tear that had managed to fall. Putting on a fake smile she walked by his side out the tunnel. They stopped at the top of the ramp and did their usual routine then walked down to the ring. Nessa stayed on the outside as Joe handed her his belt and she slung it over her shoulder, smiling at him.

Sabu came out and Nessa's heart jumped into her throat as she saw a steel chair in his hand. Joe jumped out of the ring and stood by her side. "Normal match huh?" She whispered, trying her best not to look pissed.

Joe said nothing opting instead to give her a rough, passionate kiss that left her weak in the knees and made her forget momentarily about Sabu. He gave her a wink and got back in the ring.

The bell rung and the first thing Sabu did was throw the chair at Joe but he was able to dodge it. Nessa flinched and wanted to look away, yet she couldn't. The match was going as brutally as she knew it would and she found herself praying for Joe's safety. Sabu was sitting on the mat and the next thing Nessa knew he was pulling something out of his boot. She was unable to catch sight of what it was at first until he stood up and started charging at Joe. "Joe! He's got a spike!" Nessa yelled just in time. Joe grabbed Sabu's hand that held the spike with both of his hands only to have Sabu force him to the mat. Nessa watched in horror as Sabu was aiming the spike straight for Joe's head and face. "Come on Joe, fight him off dammit!" Nessa screamed, pounding the mat.

Joe finally countered was able to overpower him and applied an Armbar while the ref got the spike away from Sabu and threw it out of the ring allowing Nessa to breathe a sigh of relief. The match continued until Joe was able to hit the Musclebuster and got the pinfall.

He jumped out of the ring as they announced him as the winner and still X division champion then he grabbed Nessa in a bear hug who giggled and hugged him back. Joe was completely covered in sweat but it didn't matter to her at that moment, the only thing that mattered was that he made it through the match unharmed.

She gave him a kiss that rivaled the one he had given her before the match started then handed him his title. "You did it baby." She whispered and he smiled.

"I told you I would." The two of them made their way up the ramp only to have Joe stop at the entrance of the tunnel and turn back to Sabu, smiling as he held the title above his head.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: This is a short chapter but it's one that gets a very important point across. I think you'll see what I mean once you read it. It was one of the most meaningful chapters I've wrote so far because it shows a whole different side to Joe and Nessa. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it! Please review and let me know what you think!**

"I saw you and Sabin in the kitchen the other night." Joe whispered. It was the morning after the pay-per-view and they were lying in bed together.

Nessa flinched and sighed. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be babe...he's one less person I have to worry about hurting you."

"He was in love with me Joe, hell he may still be." She stated, sadly.

"Does that bother you?" He asked, turning over and leaning on his arm so he could look down at her.

"It should I know but it only manages to make me feel bad for putting him in jail."

"You shouldn't feel bad, the things he did to you...to me and us were way out of line. I think him spending that little bit of time in jail made him wake up and realize what the hell he was doing."

"That's what he said. My god Joe, I had no idea he was in love with me." Nessa said, tears in her eyes.

"Short of him telling you so...there was no way you could have. Don't beat yourself up about it because it's not good for you. You've forgiven him for what he's done and I'm sure that he's forgiven you for not knowing."

"Have you?"

"Have I what?" Joe questioned.

"Forgiven him for what he's done?"

"I have I suppose but it's going to take me a hell of a long time to forget and trust him again." He explained.

"I feel the same way. It shocked the hell out of me to have him break down in my arms like that, I wasn't expecting something like that at all."

"He probably wasn't either for that matter. You're best bet though is not to talk about it unless he does, you know us men have our pride and we don't like to admit to everyone that we have feelings." Joe stated and Nessa giggled.

"I may be an evil bitch at times but I'm not _that_ bad."

"Never thought you were babe, I was just stating a fact."

"Yes baby...I know how sensitive the male ego can be." Nessa teased and Joe laughed.

"You think that's funny do you?" He asked, leaning over to bite her gently on the neck.

"Mmm I sure do."

"Well, as much as we'd both love to stay here and finish this we have tapings tonight." Joe growled. Neither of them were exactly happy with the fact that they had moved the tapings to Mondays but there was nothing they could do.

"We'll finish it after we get home tonight."

"Damn straight we will." He said, kissing her fiercely and she moaned loudly in his mouth.

"Enough Joe or we're never going to make it out of this bedroom." She whispered breathlessly. He laughed and the two of them got out of bed to get ready for the day.

"You ready?" Joe questioned, stepping into the bathroom where Nessa was putting the finishing touches on her make-up.

"Sure am, let's get out of here." He grabbed both of their bags and they walked out of the apartment hand in hand.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: I make no claim to the new person added to this story though I wouldn't mind owning him for a while! I hope you enjoy this chapter and the new twist to the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. On a completely off topic note: I have been a fan of Abyss for as long as I've been watching TNA which has been about a year or two now (I think in the beginning it had something to do with how well the man could and _still_ can fill out a pair of leather pants) and I always thought that underneath the mask was probably a very sexy man. Well, the other night I was doing some photo searching of him and found what seems to be a pretty recent photo. After seeing it I realized that what I thought all along was true. So, to make a long story shorter the reason I'm telling this is that if anyone has ever been curious and unable to find a photo of him just e-mail me and I will gladly send you the photo I found. Enough of my ramblings about Abyss and on to the story! Please review!**

"Jay Lethal again?" Nessa muttered, looking over the schedule and Joe laughed.

"He wants a shot at my title." She continued looking over the schedule until a name caught her eye.

_I'm gonna kill Chris for not telling me he's here again._ "Baby I have to go talk to Chris about something real quick."

"All right, you want me to go with you?"

"Nah...I shouldn't be too long." Nessa replied. _Just long enough to kill Christopher Daniels._ She finished silently. Nessa gave Joe a kiss then walked out of his locker room. She arrived at Chris' locker room, took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

"Come in!"

"Chris did you know..." Her question was cut off when she saw him sitting on the couch next to Chris. "Brandon." Nessa whispered his name as her breath hitched in her throat. There sitting next to Chris was Brandon Silvestry better known in TNA now as Senshi.

"Vanessa, it's been a while." He said, standing up and walking over to her.

"Since ROH." She stated once her breathing returned to normal. Nessa and Brandon had met while Chris was doing a show for ROH and hit it off immediately, dating until he decided to go back to Japan. When he left it broke Nessa's heart in two and that's when Chris and Allen took it upon themselves to find her the right man.

"You still look the same...as good as you always have." Nessa looked away quickly, trying not to let him see that he still had an effect on her.

"I...I gotta go. I'll talk to you about this later Chris." She said and practically ran out of the room.

"You okay babe?" Joe asked when she got back inside his locker room.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine." Nessa replied, distractedly.

"Wanna try that again?"

She took a deep breath and flopped down on the couch. "He's back."

"Who is babe?"

"Brandon."

"Silvestry? What's he got to do with you?" Joe questioned, confused.

"We met during one of Chris' ROH shows and started dating...we were together for a while but then one day he came to me and stated that he was going back to Japan. It broke my heart in two because I knew there was nothing that I could do to change his mind. I never thought that I would see him again, hell I had forgotten all about him...until Lockdown. He showed up and I wanted to run and hide, then I found out he was going to be here tonight."

"That's what you went and talked to Daniels about." He concluded and she nodded.

"He was in Chris' locker room and he acted...the fucker acted like nothing had happened." Nessa growled.

"Do you still love him?" Joe whispered.

"I guess a part of me always will but...I'm not in love with him anymore, I know that for a fact."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm not gonna deny that he still doesn't have an effect on me because I don't want to lie to you _but_ my heart isn't with him, my heart is with you and it always will be." She told him and he smiled.

"I love you, you know that right?" He asked, pulling her in his lap.

"I know and I love you too." There was a knock at the door and Joe looked confusingly up at the clock.

"It's not time for my match yet. Who is it?" He called out.

"Brandon." Nessa's breath hitched in her throat for the second time that night and she clung tightly to Joe's shirt.

"You want me to tell him to go away?" Joe whispered and she shook her head. "Come in." The door opened slowly and Brandon stuck his head in.

"You sure it's okay if I come in?"

"Yeah, come on in." Nessa spoke up for the first time and he nodded, walking the rest of the way in the room. "What did you need Brand?" She asked, calling him by the nickname she had given him when they first met.

"Look..." He began, staring straight at Joe. "I know that you and Vanessa are together and I respect that but I came here to ask you and her if I could take her to dinner tonight after the show. There's a lot of things that we need to discuss and work out since I'm going to be around here for a while it seems."

"I'm her fiancee, not her keeper...she's allowed to do anything she chooses." Joe stated, Brandon smiled and turned his attention to Nessa. "Babe do you want to?" He questioned and Nessa could tell by his voice that he had no problem with it.

"Just this one time Brand because you're right, there are something's that we need to get worked out."

"I know...I'll see you after the show then." As quick as he showed up, he was gone again.

"Ness are you sure you want to do this?"

"I have to Joe. There's questions I have that only he can answer." She explained and he smiled.

"If you have any trouble you know that I'm just a phone call away, right?"

"I know baby." Another knock came on the door and Joe checked the clock again.

"It's match time." She stood up allowing him room to take his shirt off then they walked out of his locker room.

The match lasted a bit longer than his last meeting with Jay Lethal but in the end he still won and kept his title. They made their way back to his locker room with Nessa not saying very much because she was too nervous about her dinner with Brandon.

"You know you don't really have to do this." Joe whispered, pulling her close to his sweaty body and she sighed, leaning her head against his chest.

"I do have to do this Joe. I'm just nervous to find out some of the answers." She admitted and he nodded.

"That's normal...he's waiting on you." Joe said, nodding slightly down the hall and Nessa lifted her head to see Brandon standing there.

"I'll see you at home tonight baby." Nessa stated, kissing him passionately.

"It'll be fine. I love you."

"I love you too Joe." She kissed him one last time and walked down the hall towards Brandon and the answers of her past.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: And so the drama continues! This time with a twist so shocking at the end that I sat staring wide-eyed at my computer screen for about five minutes after it played out. "Miss Me Baby" has taken off in a whole new direction that I never intended it to all because of the arrival of Senshi in TNA! I'm really enjoying writing this though, it's something new to me that I've never tried my hand at before and I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I have writing it. Please review and tell me what you think as I'm really looking forward to hearing your reactions to the new twist!**

As Nessa watched Brandon watching her, her fingers idly strummed a nervous tune on the side of her coffee mug. "Why now?" She whispered and he sighed.

"Because it was time for me to come home. I didn't know you were going to be working there, honestly. Daniels told me on Sunday then I saw you during the match and I couldn't believe it, you haven't changed at all."

"Physically, maybe not...mentally, yes I have. When I met Joe I felt as if I would never find love again but he showed me differently. I mean hell, after Monty and I got divorced then you and I split up what else could I think?"

"You know that I still love you, right?" He asked.

"Yeah I do and a part of me still loves you too...I always will but I'm not in love with you anymore. Any chance of that happening went out the door with you the day you left me for Japan. Do you have any possible idea how much that hurt me Brand?"

"Probably as much as it hurt me." Brandon responded and Nessa laughed bitterly.

"Oh yeah, it hurt you so bad you walked out that door without even looking back. My god Brandon you never even stopped for one minute to ask me how I felt about it! Now you're back and you expect me to act like everything's all right between us, I just can't do that."

"I don't expect that at all."

"Is that why in Chris' locker room tonight you acted as if nothing ever happened between us? You walked over to me and struck up a conversation like I should just forget everything that happened and treat you like I do any other person in my life. I can't do that either Brand...because I still do love you and I _still_ carry the emotional scars of what went down." Nessa admitted.

Brandon slammed his fist down on the table causing Nessa to jump a little as he looked at her with a mixture of pain and anger in his eyes. "And you think I don't? You think it doesn't kill me to see you in the arms of another man? Especially a man who would accept a deal and set out to purposely hurt you." Brandon growled and Nessa looked at him in shock.

"How did you..."

"Daniels told me. Dammit Vanessa! Yes, what I did was wrong, I admit that but there's no way in hell I would _ever_ do something like that to you."

"He apologized and I forgave him." Nessa tried to defend Joe. _Damn that was weak._

"That doesn't make what he did any better...you know that as well as I do. He doesn't deserve you Vanessa."

"And you do?" She snapped and Brandon flinched.

"I do and you know it but whether it's me or not...you need to get the hell away from him."

"What makes you such an expert on relationships?"

"I'm not claiming to be! Let me ask you something though Vanessa...do you honestly think he would've proposed to you this soon under any other circumstances?" He questioned.

"What the hell are you talking about Brand?"

"Do you honestly think that he would've proposed this soon had this whole deal thing never happened? Have you ever stopped to think that maybe he just did it to keep from losing you?"

"You don't know what the hell you're talking about!" _Dammit could he be right?_

"Don't I? Let's take a walk." His abrupt change of subject had her utterly confused but she got up and followed him as he paid the bill and walked outside. They walked along the beach, just enjoying the night air until he suddenly stopped and turned to her.

"What are..." Her question was cut off by Brandon taking her into his arms and kissing her. Nessa tried to fight out of his grasp but he was too strong for her. After the kiss ended she drew her hand back and slapped him across the face. "Asshole! Don't ever fucking do that again!" Nessa hissed.

"Look me in the eye and tell me you didn't feel anything and I'll never touch you again." Brandon stated.

Nessa looked him in the eye for a few minutes then sighed and looked away. "I can't."


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N:** **Now I usually don't plug other authors and their stories because that's just not my style but I'm making an exception this time since the author happens to be a dear friend of mine. So, on that note please check out Ruby in the Dust and her "Blood and Fire" series if you haven't already! As I've stated in my profile she writes about the men in TNA that most people wouldn't pay much attention to.**

"And then he kissed me." Nessa had just spent the better part of an hour explaining to Chris Daniels what had happened the night before.

After the incident with Brandon, Nessa came home to find that Joe was already in bed so she decided to do the same and ended up crying herself to sleep. The next morning she woke up and Joe was gone with a note on his pillow saying that he had some things to take care of that day so Nessa called Chris and invited him over. She chose Chris instead of Allen because he knew the most about her relationship with Brandon.

"Well, that explains it." Chris mumbled.

"Explains what?"

"Joe called Allen this morning wondering if he knew if something happened or not because he heard you crying late last night."

"Oh god." Nessa muttered and dropped her head in her hands.

"Nessa what else happened?" Chris asked.

She sighed because she knew there was no hiding anything from Chris. "I slapped him, called him an asshole and told him never to do it again. He said that if I could look him in the eye and tell him I didn't feel anything he'd never touch me again."

"And did you?"

"I couldn't Chris...when he kissed me all those feelings came rushing back again and I don't know what the fuck to do!" Nessa exclaimed, frustrated.

"You need to tell Joe."

"Tell him what? That my ex hates him and wants to steal me away?"

"Oh really?" Joe's voice questioned from the doorway and Nessa froze, staring wide-eyed at Chris.

"Joe I..."

"Ness exactly what the hell happened last night?" He asked, sitting down beside her.

"To make a long story short...he heard from someone about the deal that you made with Storm and pretty much despises you for it. He still loves me and wants to be with me and kind of...kissed me." She left out the fact that he heard about the deal from Chris and whispered the part about the kiss.

"HE WHAT?" Joe yelled, jumping up and pacing the room.

"Joe, pacing a hole in our kitchen floor isn't going to change anything."

"What did you do?" He mumbled so low she could barely hear him.

"Huh?"

"WHAT did _you_ DO?" Joe growled.

"I slapped him! I don't know what the fuck is going on in that head of yours right now but don't you dare accuse me of cheating on you." Nessa hissed and walked off into the other room. A million things were going through her mind as she sat down on the couch. In a way she did feel as if she had cheated on him but she also knew that she wasn't the one who initiated the kiss in the first place.

"Ness?" Joe whispered, coming into the room and sitting down beside her. "You're right...I shouldn't have accused you of cheating me. I guess that I was just so pissed at him for what he did that I wasn't thinking clearly. I am now though and...as much as I love you and you know that I do, I can't marry you until you know for sure in your heart that I'm the one you want." With that said and before Nessa could respond Joe got up and left the apartment.

"What happened?" Chris questioned, sitting down.

"I...I...he just broke off our engagement."


	17. Chapter 17

Nessa walked through the halls of the Impact Zone with a purpose as she headed to the locker room where Brandon was. Joe didn't have a match that week so he wasn't there which was something she was very thankful for. When she reached the locker room she threw the door open, ignoring the protests of the other men in the room and walked straight over to Brandon. "We need to talk and we need to do it NOW!" She growled. Brandon nodded and led her out of the locker room.

"What's going on Vanessa?" He asked once they were out of earshot of everyone else.

"Joe broke off our engagement because of you...that's what." Nessa hissed and Brandon looked at her in shock.

"What? Why did he do that and why the hell is it my fault?"

"He walked in as I was explaining to Chris what happened between us. My god Brand, what am I going to do?" She questioned, tears flowing from her eyes.

"Shh...come on now baby everything will be okay." Brandon whispered, taking her in his arms. "Did he say why he broke it off?"

"He said he couldn't marry me until I know for sure in my heart that it's him I want and not you."

"And do you?"

"No." She admitted, burying her face in his chest. "I love you both so damn much and I'm really confused. I thought Joe was the one for me, I really did...then you came back into my life and so did all the feelings that I have for you. What do I do Brand?" Nessa asked.

"Are you guys still together?" He questioned and she laughed bitterly.

"I have no fucking clue anymore! I haven't seen or heard from him since the day after you kissed me."

"Daniels have his number?"

"I think so, why?"

"Let's go have him call him and find out what the fuck is going on. If he says no then...there's something I want to talk to you about." Brandon suggested and she nodded. They walked back to the locker room and found Chris standing in the hall talking to Allen. "Daniels!" Brandon called out and Chris turned to him.

"Yeah man? Hey Nessa." He said, hugging her.

"Hey Chris."

"You got Seannoa's number?" Brandon questioned.

"Yeah, why?"

"Vanessa hasn't heard from him since the day she talked to you about what happened and was wondering if you would call him and find out what the hell is going on."

"Sure." Chris disappeared into the locker room only to return a minute later with his cell phone. He dialed Joe's number while Nessa stood watching him nervously. "Hey Joe, it's Daniels...I'm good man how are you?" He listened for a few minutes and Nessa wished she could hear what he was saying. "Yeah I heard about that I'm really sorry...I have, she's here as a matter of fact." Nessa knew that Joe had asked about her and that made her smile. "So, what's going on with you two? She said she hasn't heard from you since that day...Damn man, are you sure about that?" He asked and Nessa saw his face drop. "All right, I'll tell her then...Yeah, you too." Chris hung up the phone and turned to Nessa with sadness in his eyes. "I'm sorry honey but he said he couldn't be with you anymore."

"No...no." She whispered, shaking her head. "Please tell me you're joking?"

"I wish I could Nessa but I'm not." Chris stated, taking her in his arms as the tears flowed from her eyes for the second time that night.

"Oh god, I really fucked up this time."

"I'm so sorry Nessa. I know how much you love him."

"We all do." Allen spoke up for the first time.

"I've got to get out of here."

"Where are you gonna go?" Allen asked.

"I don't know but I've got to get away from here. Just remember that I love you guys...I always will." She said, hugging the three of them then she ran out of the building and jumped in her truck, speeding off before anyone could stop her.

As Nessa drove back to her apartment she thought of places she could go and finally decided to go back home to Georgia. While packing some of her things up her cell phone rang, she checked the caller ID and smiled weakly when she saw Allen's name. "Hi Allen."

"Hey Nessa...how are you?"

"Not good, I'm going home."

"That's good. You need your rest after what just..."

"No Allen, I'm going home...to Georgia." Nessa explained and she heard him gasp.

"What? Why?"

"I told you I needed to get away from here and I meant it."

"I thought you just meant the arena. Running away from your problems isn't going to solve them Nessa, you know that." Allen tried to reason with her.

"Don't you think I know that? Dammit Allen I just lost one of the best things that ever happened to me!"

"One of the best things? What was the other?"

"Brandon." She replied without hesitation.

"So why run away from him? You know he still loves you and wants to be with you. Just because you lost Joe doesn't mean you have to lose him too."

Nessa sighed and sat down on her bed. "You're right Allen...he wouldn't happen to be close by would he?"

"I know I am and yeah he is, hang on a minute." She heard the phone being shuffled around and smiled a little when she heard the cat calls from the other guys when Allen handed Brandon the phone.

"Hello?" His deep voice came across the line and sent chills all over Nessa's body.

"So, what you wearing baby?" She teased him and smiled when he laughed.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Oh I see how it is. Are you done with your promo?"

"Yeah. I just got finished, why?" Brandon questioned.

"I was wondering if you wanted to come over for a while."

"Sure. You still live in the same place, right?"

"Yes, just two floors up though. I had to move when...when Joe and I moved in together." Nessa whispered.

"All right sweetie. I'll be there soon." Nessa hung up the phone, grabbed some clothes and ran into the bathroom to take a shower. She took a quick shower and changed into a pair of short shorts and a black tank top then fixed her hair and make-up. Just as she got to the bottom of the stairs the doorbell rang and she opened it to find Brandon standing there.

"You were going to go back home?" He asked and she rolled her eyes.

"Allen has a big mouth. Yes I was but he convinced me otherwise." She stated as they sat down on the couch.

"What did he say to convince you?"

"That just because I lost Joe didn't mean I had to lose you too."

"He's right, you know? I love you Vanessa...I always have and I regret leaving you behind. If I had it all to do over again I would've took you with me." Brandon stated.

"And I would've went too, that's how much I loved you back then...how much I still love you today."

"You remember that I said there was something I wanted to talk to you about after you found out what was going on with Joe?"

"Yeah. What about it?" Nessa asked.

"Well...I was wondering if you would consider giving us another chance."


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: I want to thank DiMeraslover for the review of the last chapter and the ideas of the fights. Don't worry though...those will be coming soon I promise you that. I also want to thank everyone else who has reviewed this story! You guys have given me a reason to sit down and actually get these chapters out as soon as I can. I hope you like this one as much as you have the other ones. Please review and let me know!**

Nessa sat staring at Brandon for a few minutes, not believing the words that just came from his mouth then slowly a smile spread across her face. "I'll do more than consider it." She stated, moving over and climbing on to his lap.

"Oh?" He questioned and moaned softly as her lips came in contact with his neck.

"Uh huh. I love you Brandon."

"I love you too Vanessa." Brandon whispered, kissing her gently at first before tangling his hand in her hair and deepening the kiss. "I have something for you." He said once the kiss ended.

"You do?"

"Yeah." He lifted her up with ease and placed her on the couch then walked over to his bag. Nessa watched as he got something out of it and turned back to her. "I held on to this just in case our paths ever crossed again this way." Brandon held a box out to her and she looked up at him questioningly. "Just open it, I think you'll like it." Nessa shrugged and opened the box, giggling at what she found inside.

"You kept this?" She asked, pulling the necklace out that she had made not long after they started dating that had a charm with 'Low Ki' on it.

"I did but I got something new for it." He handed her another box that she opened and smiled when she saw a new charm with 'Senshi' on it. "I figured since I changed my ring name that you might want to update it." Nessa nodded and switched the charms, placing the old charm in the box and laying it on the end table.

"I still can't get over the fact that you kept this." Nessa said as she handed it to him, stood up and moved her hair out of the way.

"Somehow I knew in my heart that we would be together again so I just couldn't bring myself to get rid of it." He explained. Brandon put the necklace around her neck then placed a soft kiss on the back of her neck causing her to shiver and he smiled. "My kisses still have the same effect on you, I see."

"Of course they do...so does your voice." She admitted. Brandon laughed a little, sat back down on the couch and pulled her on to his lap again. "What are we going to do Brand?"

"What do you mean sweetie?"

"I still have to work with Joe."

"We'll call Larry first thing in the morning and set up a meeting about getting your storyline switched to one with me. You know that I'm going after Joe's title, right?" He asked, preparing himself for a tongue lashing.

"I know and under any other circumstances I would've hated you for it."

"But now?"

"But now...I want to see you win it. I love Joe, a part of me always will and I hope you can understand that but he hurt me." Nessa whispered, tears forming in her eyes.

"I do understand it and he will pay for hurting you, I promise you that sweetie."

"There's something that I have to do." She pulled out her cell phone and dialed a number she never thought she'd ever dial again in her lifetime.

"What?"

"James...it's Nessa. Please don't hang up."

"Fine. What the hell do you want?" He snapped and she flinched.

"To apologize...even though I still haven't forgiven you for what you did, I'm sorry that I slapped you and threatened you." Nessa heard him sigh and waited to be cussed out.

"Nessa I'm sorry for what I did. I hope that you can believe me when I say that. It's just that...when you rejected me, darlin' that hurt so bad and I wanted you to feel the same pain that I felt. I should've never went about it that way I know that now but at the time it was the only thing I could think of."

"I know James and I'm sorry I hurt you but I just can't see you as anymore than a friend."

"I understand that now and I accept it, just know that if you ever need me I'll be here for ya darlin'." He promised and she smiled, leaning back against Brandon's chest.

"Thanks James...I appreciate it. Have you heard?"

"About you and Joe? Yeah darlin' and I'm so sorry. I hope I wasn't the cause of it."

"No you weren't, my heart was." Nessa whispered and Brandon wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her tightly to him.

"What do ya mean by that?"

"My heart showed me what my mind was denying...that he's not the one for me."

"Oh yeah? Who is?" James questioned and she could hear him take a swig of beer causing her to giggle. "What's so funny darlin'?"

"Your choice of drink doesn't sound so bad right now, think I may get myself one." She stated and he laughed. Nessa gave Brandon a quick kiss, got up and walked to the kitchen.

"So, you gonna tell me who the mystery man is you just kissed?" He asked and she groaned.

"You heard that?"

"Yeah darlin', I heard it." James laughed.

"Brandon Silvestry. We dated a few years back after meeting at one of Chris Daniels ROH shows then he left for Japan and took my heart with him." She explained, grabbing a beer out of the fridge, popped the top on it and took a long swig. "Damn, that tastes good."

"Sure does. So, now that he's back you realized that it's him you want to be with and not Joe?"

"Yeah pretty much. I guess my heart always knew it but my mind thought that I could get over him and move on. When he came back though...everything changed."

"Well, that's good darlin'. As long as you're happy that's all that matters...you tell him to take care of you though or he'll be answering to AMW." James said and she laughed.

"I'll tell him. I'm gonna go now James so I can spend some time with him, it was nice talking to you though."

"It was nice talkin' to you too darlin'. Don't be afraid to call me now."

"I won't." They said their goodbyes and she hung up the phone.

"Get everything worked out?" Brandon asked and she jumped.

"My god Brand don't do that, you scared the hell out of me!"

"Sorry sweetie."

"Yeah we did. Now if I can just get out of my storyline with Joe all will be right in the world." Nessa stated, walking over to him and wrapping her arms around his neck.

"I was thinking about that while you were on the phone and got some ideas."

"Oh?"

"Yeah. We'll talk about that tomorrow though, right now...I want to make-up for lost time." With that said he lifted her in his arms and carried her upstairs where they made love until the sun came up.


	19. Chapter 19

The next week Brandon and Nessa walked into the Impact Zone together, they had been unable to meet with Larry the next day after they had gotten back together like they wanted to so a meeting was set up for the next taping. "Are you nervous sweetie?" Brandon asked.

"Honestly...yes. I mean, what if Larry decides that he doesn't want to break up mine and Joe's angle?"

"We'll do everything that we can to convince him." He assured her and she nodded. They reached Larry's office and Brandon knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Larry called out. Brandon opened the door and ushered Nessa inside. "Hello Vanessa, Brandon." He greeted them both with a handshake and they sat down across from him. Before either one of them could say a word there was a knock at the door and much to Nessa's horror and Brandon's anger, Joe walked in.

"What the hell is this?" Joe demanded to know upon seeing Nessa and Brandon.

"These two said they had something to talk to me about and that it also involves you." Larry explained. "So, what's going on Vanessa?"

"Joe and I have decided that it is in our best interests if we are not together anymore so I am here today to request that my storyline be changed." She could see the shock and surprise on Larry's face as he looked back and forth between her and Joe, also the confusion on his face when he looked at Brandon.

"Brandon if you would excuse us for a few minutes...I would like to speak to these two alone." He stated.

Brandon looked over at Nessa who nodded and he sighed. After giving her a quick kiss on the cheek he got up, shot Joe a dirty look and walked out of the room.

"Joe, please sit down." Larry said, pointing to the chair that Brandon was previously in. Joe growled and slumped down in the chair. "Now Vanessa...explain to me what has happened with you two."

"Brandon is my ex-boyfriend, I met him during one of Chris Daniels' ROH shows a few years back and we dated until he up and left for Japan. When he came back here we decided that it would be best if we talked out our differences for the sake of our jobs. After the show two weeks ago we went out to a late dinner and discussed everything then we took a walk along the beach. He ended up kissing me so I slapped him and told him never to do it again. The next day I was explaining to Chris Daniels what had happened and Joe overheard the last part of our conversation. At first Joe accused me of cheating on him until I think he realized that I would never do something like that then he ended our engagement. I hadn't heard from him for a whole week so at the tapings last week Chris Daniels called Joe and Joe stated that he could no longer be with me." Nessa finished explaining.

"Joe is all of this true?" Larry asked.

"Yeah. I just couldn't be with her knowing that there was a possibility her heart was with another man." Joe said. Nessa could hear the sadness in her voice and it broke her heart in two.

"In light of hearing all this...I'm afraid that I cannot change your storyline."

"WHAT? Why not?" Nessa yelled, standing up.

"Because despite the fact that the fans love the idea of Samoa Joe having a soft spot for a woman, I believe that the relationship between the two of you isn't completely over." Larry stated proudly.

"And I believe you've gone fucking insane." She growled, turning to leave but Joe's hand on her arm stopped her.

"Is it going to really be that bad working with me?" He questioned, his voice barely above a whisper.

"You're the one that left me Joe but...no, I suppose it won't be so bad." Nessa admitted, smiling a little.

"You know what you're supposed to be doing then tonight, right Vanessa?" Larry asked.

"No sir."

"Sting is going to be announcing me as his partner for Sacrifice tonight so you'll be escorting me out." Joe spoke up and she turned to him, shocked.

"You're teaming up with Sting?" Her eyes were lit up like a kid in a candy store and Joe couldn't help but laugh. "Sting? One of the best wrestlers that has ever lived? You're teaming up with HIM?" Her voice was becoming more excited with each question.

"Yes, that would be the one I'm teaming up with." Joe replied, laughing.

"You have got to take me to meet him...please Joe?"

"What about Brandon?" He questioned and the door opened. Brandon slowly stepped in, a sad look on his face.

"You don't have to worry about me. I'm going home, I can tell where I'm not needed or wanted." With that said and before Nessa could object he left the room, leaving her standing there stunned.

"I...I, fuck!" She raced out of the room, ignoring Joe calling after her but Brandon was long gone. Nessa collapsed against the wall and slid down to the floor, head in her hands.

"Did you find him?" Joe asked, walking up to her.

"No, he's gone."

"The hell I am." Brandon growled. Nessa looked up just in time to see him come flying out of a hidden area and attack Joe. Punches and kicks were flying from both sides as she stood up, moving away from them to avoid getting hit.

"Brandon, Joe STOP!" She screamed but still they continued fighting. "STOP IT!" She yelled and finally they both turned to her. "You're both acting like a couple of children and it needs to stop. My job is on the line here just as much as both of yours and I'm not about to let either one of you screw it up for me. I love both of you but if you're going to act like this...I can't be with either of you." Nessa started to walk away but both of her arms were grabbed, stopping her immediately. She turned to see one very angry and one very shocked man.

"You're with me now! Are you telling me that you still want to be with him too?" Brandon demanded to know, his hold tightening on her arm.

"Dammit Brandon you're hurting me!" She hissed, trying to get away from him but his grip was too strong.

"Let her go." Joe growled, releasing his own hold on her.

"Fuck you! She's my girlfriend and not you or her will tell me what to do." He said, his grip tightening even more and Nessa whimpered in pain.

"No but I will." A new voice that Nessa didn't recognize at first entered the conversation and she looked over to see Steve Borden better known as Sting standing there. "Now both of them told you to let her go so I suggest you do it." Knowing that he was surrounded by both men and had no choice Brandon let go of Nessa and stormed off.

Nessa began to collapse from the pain of his grip but Joe caught her in his arms. "You're okay now babe...I'm here."

"Tha...thank you." She whispered to Steve.

"It's no problem sweetheart and just who might you be?" He asked her, smiling.

"Nessa Callahan."

"Oh yes...I recognize you now. You're Joe's valet." Steve stated. He was trying to keep her mind off the pain and she was eternally grateful for it.

_Yeah, that's all I am._ Nessa thought. "Yeah that's me." She looked down at her arm and sighed. "Well, he left his mark. I guess I should go and see if make-up can take care of this."

"I'll go with you." Joe offered.

"No, it's okay. You go with Steve and get the stuff worked out for later, I'll meet you in your locker room."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. I'll be fine, I promise." Nessa walked off to get her arm taken care of and to mentally prepare for the night that lay ahead of her.


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is so short but I'm setting up for something major...you'll understand once you read this. Please review and let me know what you think!**

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Nessa and Joe stood in the back, watching on a monitor as Sting read facts about Joe. Every time he read one Joe grumbled causing Nessa to giggle. "I'll never understand why he had to do it this way." Joe growled.

"It's funny though...I mean, I'm learning things about you I didn't know before."

"Currently ladies and gentlemen he's the undefeated Samoan submission machine!" Sting yelled, pointing to the entrance ramp.

"That's our cue." Joe's music started up, he took Nessa's hand and the two of them walked out the tunnel much to Jarrett and Steiner's shock. He stopped long enough at the top of the ramp to kiss her and wrap his towel around her neck then they made their way to the ring where Sting was waiting for them. Nessa stood outside the ring while Joe paraded around the ring, challenging Jarrett or Steiner to get back in. Once she was sure that they wouldn't Nessa hopped in the ring, grabbed both Joe and Sting's hands and raised them in the air. Joe and Sting bumped knuckles then he and Nessa made their way to the back.

"Well, I had better get going."

"You going home?" Joe asked and Nessa nodded.

"I really don't have any other plans...with Brandon being pissed at me and all." She said, sighing.

"I'm truly sorry about that Ness, you know that I would never do anything to hurt you." The minute he said those words he wished he could take them back after he saw the pain flash in her eyes.

"You never would huh?" Nessa snapped, bitterly and Joe flinched.

"Okay I deserved that...do you think we could go somewhere and talk?"

"Joe I don't think that's such a good idea, at least not tonight. I just want to go home and curl up in bed with a good book to forget about everything that's happened tonight." She stated and he nodded.

"I understand. If you need anything you know how to reach me." Nessa smiled, kissed him on the cheek and walked out of the building.

As she was walking to her truck Nessa could've swore she heard someone following her but she chose to ignore it at first. The footsteps were coming closer so she picked up speed only to be grabbed around the waist by two strong arms.

"You should have never tried to deceive me." A voice hissed in her ear that she immediately recognized. Before Nessa could call out for help the person covered her mouth with one hand, panicking Nessa did the only thing she knew to do...she bit down hard on the person's hand. "Ahh! You little bitch!" The person yelled, pulling away quickly.

Nessa turned around to face her attacker, scowling. "You! How could you do something like this?"

"I told you that you should have never tried to deceive me." Not allowing her to say another word the person punched her squarely in the jaw, knocking her to the ground. Nessa looked up shocked, not believing that they had just actually hit her. "Don't look so shocked...you knew you had this coming." She slowly tried to get up but before she had the chance to they gave her a very stiff kick to the head knocking her out cold.

"I'm telling you Chris...if I ever get a hold of Silvestry I'm gonna kick his teeth down his throat for putting his hands on Nessa." Allen growled as he and Chris Daniels walked through the parking lot.

"I know how you...oh god please tell me that's not who I think it is." Chris gasped, looking in the direction of a small figure lying unmoving on the pavement.

"Oh hell, I think it is!" The two of them ran over to the figure, kneeling down beside who they soon discovered was Nessa. "Nessa, honey wake up." Allen called out to her but she didn't move. "Shit man something's really wrong."

"You get her in my car...I'm calling Joe." Chris instructed Allen who nodded and gently lifted Nessa up in his arms. Chris pulled out his cell phone and dialed Joe's number, dreading the call.

"Hello?"

"Joe? It's Daniels...you need to meet us at Orlando Regional Medical Center."

"What? Why?" Joe asked, confused.

"It's Nessa. Allen and I were on our way out and we found her lying unconscious in the parking lot."

"I'll meet you guys there." Joe growled and hung up the phone before Chris could say anything else and he sighed.

"He coming?" Allen questioned when Chris got in the car.

"Yeah and I feel sorry for whoever did this if he gets a hold of them." He said and drove towards the hospital.

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**A/N 2: All right, there you have it! Please review and let me know who you think the person is!**


	21. Chapter 21

Joe walked into the hospital feeling as though his heart was going to pound out of his chest, his anger mounting with each step.

"Joe!" He heard Chris call his name and turned to find him standing across the hall with Allen.

Picking up speed Joe walked over to them, his breathing heavy from anger. "What's going on? Where is she? How is she? What happened?" He was firing off questions at a faster rate than either Allen or Chris could comprehend.

"Whoa big man, calm down. She's back with the doctor right now...she was still unconscious when we brought her in. We have no idea what happened and we probably won't until she wakes up and tells us herself." Allen explained.

Joe sighed and collapsed against a wall. "This is all my fault, I should've never left her let alone let her go out by herself tonight."

Chris put his hand on Joe's shoulder and shook his head. "This isn't your fault Joe. You didn't know this would happen...none of us did." Before anyone else could say anything they were interrupted by a voice.

"Is there a Mr. Daniels or a Mr. Jones here?" All three of them looked over to see a doctor standing there.

"I'm Chris Daniels." Chris spoke up, the doctor nodded and walked over to them.

"My name is Dr. Thompson and..." The doctor trailed off when he spotted Joe and looked at Chris questioningly.

"This is her...husband." Chris lied.

"Very well, as I was saying my name is Dr. Thompson, Miss Callahan is awake and asking for you. She suffered a concussion as well as her left wrist being broken...do you happen to know what caused this?" Dr. Thompson asked them and they all shook their heads.

"We were working and found her out in the parking lot unconscious." Allen said, speaking up for the first time.

"I suppose she'll tell you then if she wants because she's refusing to give us any information. If you gentlemen will follow me I'll take you to see her." Chris, Allen and Joe all followed the doctor through the hall and into a small exam room. "Miss Callahan you're husband and friends are here to see you."

_Husband?_ Nessa thought, confused but giggled a little when she saw Joe walk in the room. Within a matter of seconds he was by her side holding her hand.

"Babe I am so sorry...I should've went with you tonight."

"Joe it's not your fault. I told you that I wanted to go myself so there was nothing you could do...Brandon." She whispered the name and he could barely hear her but he pulled away quickly.

"He's not here."

"No Joe...he's the one who did this." She clarified and heard all three men growl. Joe stood up, ready to head for the door but stopped when he felt Nessa grab his hand. "Don't Joe, not this way please." Nessa whispered. She could see him trying to get his anger in check but he finally sat down next to her. "Thank you."

"Do you need anything Nessa?" Chris asked, walking over and kissing her forehead.

"Nothing that I can think of right now except maybe for a new head since mine is killing me." She joked and they all laughed.

"Still making jokes I see." Allen said, stepping up to her.

"Hey, you know me. I never can take this shit too seriously...he'll get what's coming to him if I have to do it myself."

"You won't have to Ness we'll take care of it, he'll never hurt you again. You're not coming to the pay-per-view Sunday are you?" Joe questioned and Nessa looked at him like he was crazy.

"Are you kidding me? You're teaming up with Sting! I wouldn't miss it for the world Joe...besides that Alannah will have to be there for her man won't she?" Nessa teased him and he smiled.

"Yeah but I was kind of hoping you'd be there for yours too." Neither of them heard Chris or Allen slip out of the room as Nessa sat in the hospital bed looking at Joe in shock.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"Nessa I made a mistake in giving up so easily, I should've fought harder for you. You know that I'm not the kind of man to give up what I want just like that so I don't have an answer for why I did but if you'll give me another chance I promise you that I won't give you up without a fight this time. I love you more than anything and I know in my heart that we should be together, you may not believe that now but I do."

"Joe I do love you..." Nessa trailed off.

"But?" He knew there was a "but" he could hear it in her voice.

"But...I just can't. Not right now anyway, I will promise you though that when I'm ready you'll be the first to know. I also promise that until that time comes I won't be with anyone else."

Joe sighed, knowing there was nothing he could do right now to change her mind. "I guess I can accept that but until that time does come I will be by your side proving to you that we do belong together and I'll be here for you whenever you need me. I want to ask you something and I'll understand if you say no but I want you to hear my reason for asking you first okay?" Nessa nodded, listening intently to what he had to say. "Will you let me stay with you for now? I know Chris and Allen would both feel better if someone was there to protect you incase something like this were to happen again and quite frankly so would I. I'm not saying that we have to sleep together or anything...unless you want to, I just want to be there."

"I would feel better myself if you were there actually. I was going to ask you but I didn't think it'd be the right thing to do." She admitted and he smiled.

"Great! Then it's settled." The doctor came in, smiling when he saw the two talking with each other.

"Ahh Miss Callahan, I see that you are feeling better."

"Much. When do you think I'll be able to go home?" Nessa asked and he laughed.

"That's precisely what I came to talk to you about. If you feel that you are able to, we can release you now as long as your husband promises to keep an eye on you."

"That won't be a problem Dr. Thompson. He's a professional wrestler and has had concussions before so he knows what to look for if anything goes wrong." She explained.

"Wonderful! I'll go get your discharge papers ready and we'll have you out of here as soon as possible. Here is a prescription for some painkillers to help with your wrist, take one every four to six hours as needed." He said, handing her a slip of paper.

"Thank you very much doctor, you've been very helpful to me and my wife." Joe stated. When Nessa heard Joe call her his wife her heart fluttered a little and she smiled.

"Just doing my job sir." Dr. Thompson left the room and Nessa giggled.

"So, who's idea was that?" She asked.

"What?"

"Saying that you're my husband."

"Daniels'. He saw the doc wasn't going to say anything in front of me or let me come back here so he had to think of a fast reason to tell him so he would. You're not mad about it are you?" Joe questioned, worried.

"Not at all. It just confused the hell out of me when he first came in here and said my husband and friends were here to see me. Once I saw you, I realized what was going on."

"Good. Ness...did Silvestry say anything tonight?" She flinched at just the memory of what he said and what happened.

"He kept saying over and over that I thought I could deceive him, I still have no fucking clue what the hell he was talking about. When he hit me the first time he told me not to look so shocked...that I knew I had it coming." At those words a thought popped into Joe's mind and he immediately became concerned.

"Ness did he ever hit you before when you were together?"

"Brandon? I...I...yes." She whispered and dropped her head as tears formed in her eyes. Joe reached out, hooked his finger under her chin and lifted her head until she was looking into his eyes.

"He'll never touch you again babe, I promise you that with all that I am." Nessa nodded and was about to say something but a nurse walked in and interrupted her.

"Miss Callahan? You're all ready to go, just sign here." The nurse handed her a clipboard and she quickly signed it. "If your symptoms get worse please come back here immediately, other than that you're free to go." She took the clipboard back and left the room.

"I'll step outside so you can get dressed." Joe said, standing up but Nessa stopped him.

"Why? It's not like I don't have anything you haven't already seen. Besides that, I may need some help with this thing and all." She stated, holding up her left hand which was in a cast and he laughed.

Joe grabbed her jeans and stepped in front of her. "Sit on the side of the bed." He instructed and she quickly complied. He bent down and slid the jeans on one leg at a time then straightened up. "Stand up babe." He held his hand out and she took it, hopping down off the bed. Joe pulled her jeans up the rest of the way, fastening them and Nessa gasped a little as his hand brushed over her stomach. Joe went over and got her shirt off the chair and turned around, gasping when he saw that she had already removed the gown and was just standing there in her jeans and bra. He shook the dirty thoughts that quickly entered his mind and walked over to her. "Arms up." Nessa giggled and lifted her arms up so he could slip the shirt over her head.

Nessa slipped her feet into her sandals and looked at him. "Let's go home Joe."


	22. Chapter 22

It was the night of Sacrifice and Nessa sat in Joe's locker room with him waiting for Joe to come back and let her know if Brandon was going to be there or not. The door opened and Joe walked in with Chris and Allen following behind him. "Hey guys...Joe, what did you find out?"

"He doesn't have a match tonight so he shouldn't be here. I told Larry what happened and he said that if he does show up he'll let us know so we can keep you protected."

"How are you feeling Nessa?" Chris asked.

"Better. The painkillers the doc gave me have pretty much kept me out of it so I didn't feel any pain." There was a knock on the door and Joe opened it only to see James Storm standing there.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Joe snapped.

"I came to see Nessa." James said and Joe growled.

"Joe...it's okay." Nessa spoke up and he turned to look at her.

"It's what?"

"Let him in and I'll tell you." Joe sighed and moved to let James in.

"Hey darlin' how are you feelin'?"

"I'm okay now, the painkillers make me forget about everything that happened so that's one good thing."

"All right would someone please explain to me what the hell is going on here?" Joe demanded.

"The night that you told me we couldn't be together anymore I came to the realization that after losing you I wasn't going to lose my friends too. So, I called James and we talked everything out. I know why he made the deal with you and he knows how it made me feel. I forgave him for it and he forgave me for hitting him...you've forgiven me for what I did so do you think you could do the same for him?" Nessa asked Joe and he sat down next to her.

"I guess so, just so that he understands he better not pull that shit again." He said, looking at James.

"Don't worry man, I won't. I know she only likes me as a friend and I accept that now." There was another knock on the door and Allen opened it this time.

"It's time for Joe's promo." The voice of a stagehand said and Joe stood up.

"You ready Ness?"

"Yeah, let's go." She followed him out of the locker room to where Jeremy Borash was standing and they listened as he introduced them then Joe walked up to him with Nessa on his arm.

"Joe you heard Jarrett and Steiner's comments earlier so what do you have to say? Are you and Sting going to be able to coexist?"

"I was brought in to get a job done, not hold hands and sing Kumbayah so that's exactly what I'm going to do. As far as Steiner goes...he says he has a bad reputation...well, Scott tonight I'm going to make my reputation by killing yours." With that said the two of them turned around and walked away.

"Aww you're not gonna hold Sting's hand and sing Kumbayah with him?" Nessa teased once they were far enough away from the camera and Joe laughed.

"Liked that did you?"

"Yeah, it took everything I had in me not to bust up laughing." She giggled. They walked into Joe's locker room and Nessa went into the bathroom and changed into her modified 'Joe's Gonna Kill You' t-shirt and a blue skirt with black stripes. "Do I look all right Joe?" She asked once she stepped out.

"You look sexy. I like what you did with the shirt." Nessa smiled and blushed. "Aww am I making you blush Ness?" Joe teased her and she stuck her tongue out at him. "Don't stick that out unless you plan on using it." He growled. Nessa looked at him in shock and immediately put her tongue back in her mouth. There was a knock on the door and Joe opened it to reveal Steve Borden in his Sting gear.

"Hey Joe...you ready to do this tonight?" Steve asked, stepping into the room and he smiled when he spotted Nessa. "Hello Nessa, how are you?"

"Fine Steve, you?"

"I'm good. You going to be out there tonight?"

"No." Joe spoke up and Nessa looked at him.

"Excuse me?" Nessa questioned.

"It's too dangerous Ness. I don't want you going out there and getting hurt." Joe explained and Nessa shook her head.

"I'm going out there tonight Joe whether you like it or not. You're teaming up with one of my favorite wrestlers, not to mention the fact that you are going against Jarrett...someone who I cannot stand at all."

"Joe she'll be okay, when you're in the ring I'll keep an eye on her and you can do the same while I'm in the ring." Steve tried to reason with him.

"See Joe? Everything will be fine. Besides that, I want to be out there for you anyway." She told him.

Finally Joe sighed and nodded. "All right...just promise me that if anything goes wrong you'll come straight back here."

"I promise." There was another knock at the door and they knew that meant it was match time. "Now let's go so you can kick some Jarrett butt." The three of them laughed then made their way to the tunnel. Steiner's stupid siren music started up and Nessa watched in disgust as he walked to the ring, flexing his muscles. Then it was Jarrett's turn and he came out with Gail Kim which Nessa knew spelled trouble. "Great, he brought the broad with him."

"She'll stay out of it or she'll have me to deal with." Joe growled. His music started up and he turned to Nessa. "You ready?"

"Yep!" He took her hand and the two of them made their way out of the tunnel.

Joe stopped at the top of the ramp, wrapped his towel around Nessa's neck and pulled her close to his body. "Don't look shocked." He whispered and before she could ask what he meant he placed his hands on her hips and slid them around until they rested just below her ass. With ease he lifted her up and Nessa instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist as her fingers toyed with his hair. Deciding to take the lead Nessa brought her lips crashing down on his causing him to grunt in surprise. Joe broke the kiss and sat her down gently on her feet then they made their way to the ring with her walking a few steps ahead of him.

Nessa's head was still reeling from the kiss they had just shared but she was brought down off cloud nine when she felt someone slap her ass. She turned around quickly to find Joe standing there smiling at her evilly. _Oh, you will so pay for that later!_ Nessa watched Joe get in the ring and turned to watch up the ramp for Sting. His entrance was amazing and the crowd was almost deafening. When he got to the ring, he winked at Nessa and climbed inside.

The match started off with Sting and Jarrett with Jarrett trying to prove he's stronger than Sting but Sting just blew him off. Finally Jarrett had enough and tagged Steiner and they locked up for a while until Sting pointed to Joe causing the crowd to chant Joe's name. Sting tagged Joe in and he got into a stare down with Scott Steiner who got in Joe's face only to have Joe shove him away. The two started chopping each until Steiner hit Joe with a over the head belly-to-belly suplex. They kept going back and forth between each other until Joe finally got the tag into Sting again.

"Joe!" Nessa yelled and he turned to look at her. "The next time you get in there you best get pissed, otherwise they're going to take advantage of you." Joe nodded and got another tag. When he did get in the ring, Joe did exactly what Nessa told him...he got pissed. Eventually it led him to getting the Musclebuster and the pin on Jarrett. The ref raised both their hands and Nessa jumped in the ring. Sting tried to raise Joe's hand but he pulled away, turning his back. She walked over to him and handed him his towel and belt. "He's holding his hand out Joe." She whispered and Joe turned to look at Sting. He stood there looking at him for a few minutes before turning his back again. "Joe, what are you doing? Shake his hand!" Nessa urged him.

Joe sighed and turned back around, shook Sting's hand then got out of the ring with Nessa following behind him. They walked up the ramp together when Nessa heard a sickening thud, she turned around to see Jarrett and Steiner attacking Sting with a chair. "What is it?" Joe asked.

"They're attacking him." Joe sighed and turned towards the ring. "Joe, don't. You did your job so let's just go." He just stood there staring at Steiner and Jarrett for a few minutes before finally taking Nessa's hand, turning his back and walking through the tunnel. "Let's get to the locker room so you can take a shower then we'll go home."

"You going to join me?" He flirted and Nessa giggled.

"Not tonight Joe." They went to his locker room where he took a quick shower then they left the arena to go to Nessa's apartment.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: There are some spoilers in this chapter so be warned! I apologize if the last chapter wasn't up to standards but I had a lot on my plate, hopefully this one will be better. Please review and let me know what you think!**

Nessa woke up the next morning unable to move and she couldn't figure out why until her mind finally registered that someone had their arms wrapped around her. She turned her head to see Joe lying behind her sound asleep. Nessa turned her body over the best she could and poked him in the side knowing that was the only way to wake him up. Sure enough Joe's eyes popped open and he looked at her. "What are you doing in my bed Joe?"

"You were having nightmares last night. I did my best to wake you up but you wouldn't, the only way you would calm down is when I touched you so I decided to hold you for a while. I must've fallen asleep, I'm sorry."

"Don't be. Thank you for staying with me...we had better get ready to head into the arena though." She went to get up but Joe held her in place. "Joe what..." Her words were cut off by his lips crashing down on hers and Nessa moaned softly in his mouth.

The kiss ended and Joe smiled down at her. "Let me love you? Even if it is just this once." He whispered and she nodded. He maneuvered his body on top of hers and proceeded to make love to her.

Two hours and a shower later they were heading out the door to the tapings. "Who do you have tonight?" Nessa asked him.

"I have to tape two matches tonight. One against Chase Stevens for Impact this week and the other against David Young for Xplosion." They arrived at the arena a little while later only to find Chris and Allen standing there waiting for them.

"Silvestry's not going to be here tonight so you'll be safe." Allen stated, hugging Nessa and she sighed in relief.

"Good, one less worry on my mind. Hey Chris, how are ya?"

"Fine. You look better...you're glowing." He teased and she blushed.

"Shove it Chris." Nessa growled and he laughed. The four of them walked into the arena and went to Joe's locker room. "When's your matches Joe?"

"Second and last."

"Let's go get something to eat then since...we didn't have the chance to this morning." She said and blushed. _What the hell? I've never blushed this much around him before!_

"Sounds good to me." Nessa, Chris and Allen all followed Joe out of the locker room to catering and she smiled when she spotted Andy Douglas.

"Andy!" He turned around when he heard his name being called, a grin plastered on his face when he saw who it was.

"Nessa!" Andy started towards her but stopped suddenly when he saw her wrist was in a cast. "What the hell happened?"

"Brandon Silvestry happened. He jumped me in the parking lot last week when I stated that I loved both him and Joe and was confused as to which one of them I want to be with."

"He jumped you? What the fuck is his problem? How bad did he hurt you?" Andy fired off questions and Nessa giggled.

"Yes he jumped me, no idea what the fuck his problem is and he gave me a concussion plus broke my wrist. Why don't you come sit with us?" She asked and he nodded. Nessa turned around only to discover that Joe, Allen and Chris had already gotten her a plate and a table. "Well, seems my boys are taking good care of me so you get your food then come sit with us." She told him and walked over to sit beside Joe.

"How pissed was he?" Joe questioned.

"Not quite as pissed as you were but pissed enough. It makes me feel so good to have all you guys around to protect me."

"Protect you from what?" Monty's voice sounded beside her and she swung around completely shocked.

"Monty? Oh my god! It's so good to see you, how's your knee?"

"Better...what happened to you?" He asked, pointing to her wrist and sat down at the table.

"I really don't want to tell you." Nessa mumbled. She knew the minute he found out what happened his reaction would be just as bad, if not worse than Joe's.

"Fine, you tell me." Monty stated, looking at Joe.

"Ness and I are no longer together. She got back together with Silvestry but soon realized that she was confused as to which one of us she really loves and wants to be with. Well, when he heard this he got all pissed off and ended up attacking her in the parking lot last week. Allen and Chris found her unconscious and took her to the hospital. She ended up with a concussion and a broken wrist." Joe explained.

"That little son of a bitch! Is he here?" Monty demanded to know, standing up so suddenly that his chair went flying across the room.

"No he isn't Monty...calm down, please?" Nessa begged him, getting up and placing her hand on his arm. "There's nothing you can do that won't put your job in jeopardy anyway and I won't let you do that."

"I don't give a flying fuck Nessa! And just where the hell were you?" He asked, staring at Joe.

"Monty don't, he wanted to go somewhere and talk that night but I just wanted to go home by myself and forget the shit that happened that night. It wasn't his fault so don't go blaming it on him, please. Joe would never do anything intentional to physically harm me...I know that by now and so should you. If he could've prevented this I know he damn well would've and he feels bad enough about not being there as it is, he doesn't need you rubbing it in and neither do I." She was doing her best to calm him down and she could see in his eyes that it was working.

"Fine but he will pay for it somehow, I'll make damn sure of that." Monty growled.

"Stand in line Brown, he hurt the woman that I love with all my heart and I'll be damned if he gets away with it." Joe spoke up.

"We taking spots for the Silvestry ass kicking?" Andy questioned, walking up to the table.

"Yeah, why? You want in?" Allen laughed.

"Damn straight I do. I can probably think of a few others who want to be as well."

"I feel so loved." Nessa remarked sarcastically and they all laughed.

"You damn well should darlin'." James Storm said, joining them.

"What the hell is this? We having a party someone forgot to tell me about?" Nessa asked, giggling.

"They're all just happy to see you're okay Ness, you gave us all quite a scare last week babe...especially me." Joe replied, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

"I know and I'm sorry, I guess I should've taken you up on that offer of going out and talking." She whispered, leaning her head on his shoulder.

"You had no idea the asshole was going to do something like that Nessa so don't go blaming yourself for it." Chris assured her.

"Joe!" Chris Sabin's voice yelled through catering and Joe turned to him.

"Yeah?"

"Your match is up next!"

"Oh fuck! Come on Ness, we gotta go." Joe took her good hand and drug her through the catering area to the locker room. He quickly changed into his trunks while Nessa threw her clothes off and slipped into her short, strapless black dress. She put on a pair of high-heels and looked at Joe.

"You ready?"

"Yeah, let's go." The two of them left the locker room and made their way to the tunnel.

Nessa watched on the monitor as Scott Steiner made his way to the announce table and got in Don West's face. "Great, just great." She mumbled.

"Don't worry Ness...he's not gonna get near you." Joe's music started up and they walked out of the tunnel, stopping at the top of the ramp to do their usual routine. On his way to the ring Joe and Scott got into a stare-down before Scott turned and winked at Nessa then walked up the ramp.

Thinking that she was safely away from him she let her body relax only to feel someone slap her on the ass. Knowing that it couldn't have been Joe because she was holding his hand that closest to her she turned around and saw Scott standing there with an evil smile and she shuddered. Joe growled and was getting ready to go after him but Nessa put her hand on his chest to stop him. "Don't Joe, he's not worth it." She whispered.

He sighed and continued to make his way down to the ring. When Nessa spotted Chase she wanted to smile and wave at him but she knew that she had to stay in character so she gave Joe a quick kiss and watched as he climbed in the ring. The match was easier than Nessa expected it to be, with Joe soon ending it with his Choke Sleeper.

After the match had ended Joe felt unsatisfied and continued to beat on Chase until Andy Douglas ran in to make the save and check on his partner. Joe jumped out of the ring and he and Nessa made their way to the back. "One down, one to go Ness."

"Well, I'm gonna take a shower. I still feel that bastard's hand on me." She said and shuddered again.

"He'll pay for that don't worry."

"I don't." Nessa said, grabbing her bag and going in the bathroom to prepare for his other match.


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: This chapter contains a spoiler just like the last one and yes, what happens to Joe in the end really happened. I found out about it the same day they taped Xplosion. Please review and let me know what you think!**

"All right, all clean but I still feel his hand on me." Nessa said, stepping out of the bathroom as she was drying her hair.

"I'm sorry that happened Ness, I really am." Joe stated.

"Not your fault that he's a bastard Joe. I used to like him up until he cut and dyed his hair...it was like that changed his whole attitude." She picked up her brush, stood in front of the mirror and began brushing the tangles out of her hair.

Joe walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing and biting on her neck. "You look so sexy Ness, I just can't resist touching you." He growled. in her ear and she shivered. "I know I shouldn't since we're not together but I can't...it's like I'm drawn to you. I just love you so damn much."

"I know Joe and I love you too. I love feeling you touch me don't get me wrong but I...don't know."

"What are you scared of Ness?" Joe asked, turning her around in his arms.

"Of...getting hurt again I guess. I gave my heart to Brandon and he stomped all over it twice then I gave my heart to you and you threw it away too."

"I regret that everyday, trust me I do. All I'm asking is that you give me another chance to prove to you you're the only woman I want to spend the rest of my life with." He reached up with one hand and traced his finger along her jaw causing Nessa to turn into his touch. "I can see in your eyes how much you love me and I know you can see the same thing in mine. I have a question for you that you don't have to answer right now but I would like your answer by the end of the night."

"Okay...what is it?"

"Marry me? I'm not talking about a week, a month or a year from now...I'm talking about tomorrow." Nessa looked up at him in shock, not knowing what to say. "Like I said, you don't have to answer me right now but I would like to know by the end of the night." Before Nessa could say anything to him there was a knock on the door and he sighed. "Match time."

She quickly fixed her hair and clothes then they left the locker room once again neither one not knowing that this match would send their lives into a tailspin.

It was a standard match against David Young, everything seemed normal until Joe went for a kick and suddenly his knee gave out sending him crashing down to the mat. "JOE!" Nessa yelled in horror and jumped in the ring, ignoring the referee and his opponent. Joe was lying in the ring holding his knee while the ref checked on him and Nessa dropped down beside him. "Are you okay Joe?" She whispered, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Fuck it hurts!" He growled. The EMT's came racing down to the ring to check on him. "Don't let them near me, I want to get out on my own."

"Joe, please! Just let them help you." Nessa begged him but he shook his head defiantly. "Dammit Joe! Stop being so hard headed and don't you dare go there!" She said when she saw the evil look he gave her. "I love you so much Joe...please do this for your future wife?" Nessa whispered in his ear and he looked over at her wide-eyed but then nodded.

Joe allowed the EMT's to help him up and to the back where they loaded him in an ambulance and took him to the hospital with Nessa riding by his side. "Did you mean it?" Joe asked, fighting through the pain.

"Every last word Joe. Tomorrow, if everything goes well tonight I'll call Chris and Allen and...we'll go get married." They arrived at the hospital and the EMT's wheeled Joe in with Nessa at beside him, holding his hand.

The hospital wasn't that busy so they had Joe checked in and were running an MRI within fifteen minutes while Nessa sat anxiously awaiting the results with him. Finally a doctor came in and smiled at them.

"Mr. Seannoa? I'm Dr. Mason, we have the results from your MRI back and while there was no severe damage done you have a strained MCL and a tear of your PCL." Nessa gasped and tried her hardest not to break down in front of the doctor and Joe, knowing that he needed the support right now.

"What about wrestling?"

"You still should be able to wrestle but you will need to rest up between now and your next event, you'll also need to start wearing a brace otherwise there's a possibility that it could get worse."

"He'll wear the brace if it's the last thing I do." Nessa spoke up.

"And you would be?" Dr. Mason asked.

"I'm his wife." She replied, smiling at the way that sounded and Joe chuckled.

"Good. Make sure he does wear it or like I said things could get worse for him. I'll get your brace and your discharge papers and we'll have you out of here as soon as possible."

"Okay, thank you very much Dr. Mason." Joe said and shook his hand. He watched the doctor walk out and turned to Nessa. "My wife huh?"

"Well, I will be soon enough anyway. Don't think about changing the subject though...you better wear that damn brace Joe."

"I know babe, I know. Come here." He stated and like a flash she was in his arms. "I love how those two simple words effect you like that. Just think...after tomorrow you'll be Mrs. Vanessa Seannoa."

"I can't wait." Nessa giggled and kissed him. The nurse came in with his brace and discharge papers then they left the hospital to go to Nessa's apartment and plan the big day that awaited them.


	25. Chapter 25

The next morning both Nessa and Joe woke up early so they could get everything together and make the necessary phone calls. "How are you feeling Joe?" She could see him wincing every time he moved in bed.

"I'm fine." He shrugged and she shot him a look that clearly said she knew better.

"Maybe we should wait for a couple of days."

"No! I told you that I'm fine so let's just get up." Joe went to stand up but his leg wouldn't support him and he fell back on the bed. "Dammit!" He picked up a pillow and threw it across the room causing her to giggle and he gave her a dirty look. "I'm glad you're finding this so damn funny." He growled, turning away from her and she sighed.

Nessa got up on her knees, moved behind him and began massaging his shoulders. "Baby I don't find it funny at all but murdering our pillows won't help. We're waiting to get married until you can move a little better." He started to say something but she cut him off. "Don't...you can't even put your weight on your leg Joe. I'm not having you go out and injure yourself further when we can just wait, it's not like I'm going anywhere. I learned my lesson about that and I swear to you that only you telling me to leave or death will get me away from your side. Now, come on and lay back down here. I'll get the pillow you murdered and try to revive it then I'll get you some ice." She got off the bed and went to get the pillow but Joe caught her wrist in his hand, stopping her and she turned around.

Joe smiled at her, pulled her close and laid his head against her stomach. "You're too good to me sometimes. I'm sorry I got so upset, it's just that this damn knee is pissing me off cause it took us away from our plans."

Nessa smiled and ran her fingers through his hair. "It didn't take us away from them...only delayed them for a while and there's no need to apologize because I understand completely." Joe looked up and her and she leaned down to place a soft kiss on his lips. "Turn around on the bed and I'll help you get your leg up there." Joe nodded and maneuvered his body around. Nessa bent down and grabbed his leg as gently as she could. "You ready baby?" His only response was a grunt and she lifted his leg up on the bed, tears forming in her eyes when he cried out in pain. "I'm sorry baby...I'm so sorry." She whispered.

"It's fine, it has to be done anyway." Nessa kissed him again then went and got the pillow.

"Here, try not to kill it this time cause I may not be able to revive it again."

"Since you're playing nurse...are you gonna wear the outfit and everything?" He asked, smiling evilly.

"Joe! I swear, is that all you ever think about?"

"What? It was just an innocent question!" Joe said, trying his best not to laugh.

"There's nothing 'just innocent' about anything you say or do baby. Now behave, I'm gonna go get your ice then we'll watch a movie." She stated, giggling as she walked out of the bedroom.

"Better make it a lot of ice...I'm gonna need it!" Joe called after her, laughing.

_I swear not even pain will calm down that man's sex drive._ Nessa thought, shaking her head. She opened the cupboard in the kitchen to get a couple of zip-top bags out to put the ice in then she moved over to the freezer. "You hungry Joe?" Nessa yelled upstairs.

"For what exactly?" He yelled back.

"Would you stop being such a horndog for five minutes! Now are you..." Her words were cut off when she shut the freezer door and saw Brandon standing there, finger to his lips.

"Ness? Everything okay down there?"

"Tell him everything is fine." Brandon hissed.

"Yeah baby, are you hungry?" She tried her best to keep her voice steady, never taking her eyes off Brandon.

"Not right now." He answered.

"Be up in a few minutes then!" Nessa grabbed Brandon's hand and drug him out on the deck. "What the hell are _you_ doing here? Give me one good reason why I shouldn't call the cops right now."

"You really don't want Monty finding out about Nick Cvjetkovich (Sinn) do you?" Brandon questioned, a smug look on his face as Nessa's eyes went wide. "Wondering how I know about that? Oh, don't worry my dear I have my ways."

"What do you want Brandon?" She asked, knowing she now had no choice but to do whatever he asked.

"When and I do mean WHEN I get my title shot against Joe...that is if he still has the title, you will make sure I win. I don't care what you have to do but by the end of the match that belt better be around my waist. If it doesn't happen...well, Monty will find out your little secret then. Do we have an understanding?"

Nessa didn't know what to do, a million thoughts were racing through her mind. On one hand if she didn't do as he wanted then Monty would find out the one thing that would kill him inside...on the other hand if she did as he wanted she'd be hurting the one man she loved more than life itself.

"Well? Do we have a deal or not?" Brandon questioned, getting impatient.

"Yes." Nessa whispered.

"What was that?"

"Yes, dammit!" She hissed, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Good." Just as fast as he showed up, he was gone again. Nessa stood there wondering what the hell she just did.


	26. Chapter 26

Nessa sat in Chris Daniels' living room staring at the phone number in her hand, unsure as to whether she should call it or not.

"Nessa call him...you'll feel better once you know if he's the one who told Silvestry or not." Chris said, breaking her out of her thoughts.

"Yeah I guess so." She took a deep breath and dialed the number on the slip of paper, waiting for him to answer.

"Sinn's house of pain, your pain is my pleasure. Sinn speaking!"

"Nicky?" Nessa whispered, expecting to be hung up on. There was nothing said on either end for at least a full minute until he finally spoke.

"Aness?" She closed her eyes, smiling at his nickname for her and realized just how much she missed it and him.

"Yeah Nicky...it's me. How did you know?"

"You're the only one I know who calls me 'Nicky'." He explained. "Wow! It's been a long time."

"It has, almost five years now."

"I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that this isn't a social call." Nick stated and she sighed.

"No, I'm afraid it's not. I have a question for you and I only hope that you'll let me explain my reason for asking before you get pissed about it."

"Okay..." He trailed off, not knowing what else to say.

"Did you happen to tell Brandon Silvestry or anyone else besides Kelly Wolfe (Slash) about us?" Nessa questioned.

"No, why?"

"Brandon knows somehow. I'm with Joe Seannoa now who's currently the X Division champion and if I don't help him win the title if he gets a shot against Joe...he's going to tell Monty about our affair." She explained and heard him growl.

"What are you going to do?"

"What I have no choice to do Nicky...help him win." Nessa replied, sadly.

"Don't do anything irrational yet. I'm taking the first flight out there."

"But..."

"But nothing, I'm not letting you face this alone when we were both involved in it." Nick said, leaving no room for argument.

"All right." She sighed, giving in.

"Do you still have the same cell number?" He asked.

"No."

"Give me your new one then." Nick instructed and she reluctantly complied. "I'll call you back soon with the details." With that said he hung up leaving her to stare at her phone in shock.

"What's going on?" Chris questioned, sitting down beside her.

"He'll be on the first flight out here."

"Oh shit!"

"Yeah." Nessa agreed but she couldn't stop the smile that slowly spread across her face.

"What do you think he's going to do?"

"I don't know. He just said that he wasn't going to let me face this alone since we both had something to do with it."

"Nessa exactly how long did you two have an affair?" Chris asked.

"Six months before I decided to end it, I just couldn't handle the fact that I was sleeping with someone behind Monty's back."

"Is that really what you couldn't handle?" He questioned causing her to growl and stand up.

"You know, once...just once I'd like to be friends with someone who doesn't know me so damn well." She stated, pacing around the room.

"Then there was something else?" Chris already knew the answer but he wanted her to say, he knew she needed to admit to herself.

"Of course there was! I was falling in love with him and I hated myself for it."

"Why?"

"Because not only was I betraying Monty by sleeping with someone else but I also felt like I was betraying Nicky by not being able to give him all of me." She finally admitted, falling down on the couch beside him. Her cell phone rang out with ZZ Top's 'Pearl Necklace' and she sighed. "Hello?"

"Aness it's me." Nick's voice greeted her and she sat straight up making Chris laugh.

"Hey Nicky...so, what's the news?"

"Can you pick me up at the airport tomorrow at two?" He asked.

"Yeah that shouldn't be a problem. Joe's leaving tonight to take care of some business in California and he'll be gone for a few days, you can stay with me so you won't have to worry about getting a hotel or anything."

"Sounds good. I'll see you tomorrow then." They said their goodbyes and she turned to Chris who was staring at her.

"What?"

"Do you think that was a wise decision to let him stay with you while Joe's gone?"

"Nothing is gonna happen Chris. I'm a different person now, you should know that." She stated and he nodded.

"Yeah I know. Just be careful and call me if you need anything."

"I will, don't worry." Nessa gave him a hug then left to go home and check on Joe.


	27. Chapter 27

"You know I really don't like the idea of leaving you here by yourself." Joe said as he watched Nessa pack some of his things.

"I know baby but I already told you that it's just going to be overnight because a friend of mine is flying in from out of state to stay with me."

"Yeah and I don't understand why you can't tell me who this friend is." He growled and she sighed, sitting down on the bed beside him.

"I told you that it's complicated but I promise once you get back I'll tell you everything. Please, just know that I love you and that I'm going to be safe. You do trust me, don't you?"

"Of course I do. I'm just trying like hell to understand all of this."

"All in time baby, all in time." Nessa whispered, leaning over to kiss him. Their kiss was broke apart by the sound of a car horn. "There's your cab." Part of her didn't want to let him go but another part of her wanted to hurry him out the door so she could get this whole thing straightened out.

"Going to walk me out?" Joe asked.

"You know it baby." She wrapped her arm around his waist to allow him to rest some of his weight on her and she helped him down the stairs and outside to the cab, pulling his luggage behind her. "I'm going to miss you, you know that right?"

"I'm gonna miss you too babe. I'll call you as soon as I can to let you know I made it all right."

"You better." They kissed each other again and he climbed gingerly into the cab. "I love you Joe."

"I love you too Ness, I'll be back before you know it." Nessa watched the cab pull away, waving until it was completely out of sight. She walked back into the apartment which was eerily quiet and sat down on the couch, picking up her book off the end table. "This is going to be a long night." She muttered out loud. Nessa sat reading for a while, lost in her book until the phone started ringing. "Dammit." She laid her book on the couch beside her and plucked the phone off the table. "Hello?"

"Aness? Good, you still have the same number."

"Nicky? Why are you calling me tonight?" Nessa asked.

"Well...I kind of caught an earlier flight out and I'm standing outside your apartment building, at least I hope I am. You haven't moved have you?" He questioned, laughing.

"You're WHAT?" She jumped up and ran out the door, completely ignoring the strange looks from her neighbors and ran outside to see him standing by his car. "NICKY!" Nessa yelled, jumping into his arms. "I can't believe you're here! My god you look great!" She said, running her fingers through his long brown hair that was falling over his shoulders.

"So do you Aness. I think we should go inside and discuss what we are going to do about this whole situation." He stated and she nodded.

"You want anything to drink?" She asked once they were inside.

"Beer's fine." Nick replied. Nessa walked into the kitchen and grabbed two beers out of the fridge, taking them back in and handing one to him. "All right, now about this whole thing..."

"Nicky before we start that, there's something that I have to tell you."

"Okay...what is it?"

"When I broke it off with you I didn't only do it because of Monty." She said, preparing herself for an explosion.

"Why else then?"

"Because...I fell in love with you and I felt like I was betraying you since I couldn't give myself to you completely." Nessa admitted and she heard him sigh.

"I fell in love with you too. That is why it hurt me so bad when you broke it off between us."

"So, what are we going to do about Brandon and Monty?" She questioned, wanting to change the subject.

"The only logical thing we can do...tell Monty about our affair so Silvestry has nothing to hold over your head." He explained and she looked at him shocked.

"Are you insane? No wait...don't answer that, I already know the answer." Nessa giggled and he chuckled.

"Look at it this way...would you rather tell him and face the consequences or do as Silvestry wants and turn your back on Joe?"

She knew he was right but hated the thought of telling Monty about the affair. "We'll tell him."

"Good. You call him and get him over here while I bring my stuff up from my car." Nessa nodded and hesitantly picked up the phone.

Nick reached over and laid his hand on top of hers. "Everything will be okay, I promise Aness." She watched him walk out of the apartment and dialed Monty's number.

"Monty? It's Nessa."

"Hey Nessa! How are you?"

"I'm good, I was wondering if you could come over for a while? There's something that I need to talk to you about." She said.

"Yeah, sure. Give me about twenty minutes." They both said goodbye and she hung up the phone.

"He coming over?" Nick asked, walking back into the apartment.

"Yes. He'll be here in twenty minutes, bring your stuff and I'll take you up to the guest room." Nick nodded and followed her up the stairs.

"So, how long have you lived in this apartment?"

"Not too long. Joe and I moved into it when we decided to move in together, the one I had wasn't big enough for all of our shit so I talked to the landlord and he had this one left...here's your room." She stated, pointing to a door. "My room is right there incase you need anything." Nessa said, pointing to another door directly across from the guest bedroom. "I'll let you have some time alone before he gets here if you want to do anything. I'm going to go down and start dinner, are you hungry?"

"Yes."

"Good. I'll see you in a little bit then." Nessa gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and made her way back downstairs. She went into the kitchen and turned on the CD player, turning up the volume as the 'Bloody Kisses' album from Type O Negative began to play. _About time I get somebody around who I'm not afraid to listen to this music in front of._ She thought, giggling as Peter Steele's deep voice slowly calmed her nerves and she swayed seductively along with the music.

"Still have a thing for Peter Steele I see." Nick spoke up and she jumped, turning around to face him with knife in hand.

"Dammit Nicky! You scared the hell out of me."

"Sorry, I was just enjoying the show. How often do you get to listen to them?" He asked, raising himself up on the counter so he could watch her as she cooked.

"Not nearly as often as I would like. No one around here would understand my listening to their music, which is another reason I'm glad you're here." She said, turning her attention back to trimming the fat off the two steaks she was getting ready to prepare for them.

"They still think you're little miss innocent huh?" Nick questioned, his voice full of amusement.

"Of course, you're the only one who knows the truth." Nessa admitted, blushing as she thought back to the first time he discovered that she liked rough sex and being told what to do.

His cell phone rang and he sighed. "Hello?...Hey man...Yeah I'm here...Third...Why you want to talk to her?...All right, hang on." Nick held his phone out to Nessa and smiled. "It's Kelly." She smiled brightly and took the phone from him.

"Kelly!"

"Aness! How are you my dear?" He asked.

"I'm doing good, how are you?"

"Tired. Did Nick tell you?"

"Tell me what?" Nessa questioned, looking at Nick oddly who just tried his best to look innocent.

"He didn't then. Go open your front door." With one last look at Nick she walked into the living room and opened the front door only to find Kelly standing there with a smile, holding his cell phone.

"KELLY!" She jumped into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist and hugged him tight. "Oh my god! What are you doing here?"

"I couldn't let Nick come see you without me, now could I?" He questioned, hugging her back just as tight.

"I can't believe you're here, come on in!" She slipped from his arms, grabbed his hand and pulled him inside. Nessa was just about to shut the door when something stopped her, she opened it back up to reveal Monty standing there. "Monty! Come on in." Nessa whispered, looking back at Nick who just nodded reassuringly.

"Nick? Kelly? What the hell are you guys doing here?" Monty asked, shaking hands with both men.

"We just came for a visit, thought it was about time we checked up on our favorite girl." Nick lied.

"Kelly...could you go out and get another steak ready for me?" Nessa questioned and he nodded, knowing that she and Nick needed time alone to talk to Monty. She watched him walk into the kitchen and whistled teasingly causing him to shake his ass and she giggled. Nessa turned her attention back to Monty and sighed. "Have a seat Monty."

He looked confusingly between Nick and Nessa but sat down anyway. "What's going on?"

"Monty I've got something to tell you that I've been keeping hidden from you for a long time."

"Okay..."

"A week after you introduced Nicky and me...we started having an affair that lasted for six months." Nessa admitted.

"You son of a bitch!" Monty yelled and lunged at Nick.

"Monty stop!" She begged him, watching in horror as he kicked and punched Nick. "Kelly! Help!" Kelly came flying into the room and pulled a struggling Monty off of Nick. "Nicky? Oh my god! Are you okay?" Nessa asked, kneeling down beside him.

"You slut! I gave you everything and this is how you repay me? By spreading your legs for this freak? You deserved all Silvestry gave you and more!" Monty screamed, trying like hell to get away from Kelly.

Nessa stood up and walked over to him. "Monty it wasn't like..." Her words were cut off by him spitting in her face and kicking her in the stomach causing her to fall to the floor.

"You stupid motherfucker! That was the biggest mistake of your life!" Kelly growled, turning Monty around and punching him squarely in the jaw.

"No, the biggest mistake of my life was marrying that bitch!" He hissed, pointing to Nessa then he stormed out of the apartment and slammed the door behind him.

"Aness are you okay?" Nick groaned, crawling over to her.

"I'm fine." She wheezed, trying to catch her breath. "Well, I think that went well." Kelly helped her up then held his hand out to Nick and helped him up. "I'm going to go fix dinner now. Why don't you guys come in and sit with me?"

"Are you sure you'll be able to?" Kelly asked, concern evident in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine...I promise." The three of them went into the kitchen where Nessa fixed dinner then they spent some time in the hot tub before going to bed.


	28. Chapter 28

A few days later it was time for Joe to get back home and Nessa found herself getting more and more nervous as she sat there watching the clock, wishing time would go by faster.

"Hey Aness?" Nick spoke up and she turned to him.

"Yeah?"

"You've heard the saying 'A watch pot never boils' right?" He asked and she nodded. "Well, a watch clock never moves faster." Nick stated, laughing and Nessa picked up a pillow and tossed it at his head.

"Bite me Nicky." She growled.

"Don't tempt me." He teased and she blushed.

"What's going on?" Kelly asked, sleepily as he walked down the stairs.

"About time you woke up. Aness is clock watching, hoping that'll make time go faster." Nick informed him and Kelly laughed.

"It'll never work." They heard a key being twisted in the lock on the front door and Nessa smiled evilly at both of them.

"Wanna bet?" Nessa questioned as Joe walked into the apartment. "Joe!" She exclaimed, jumping up and hugging him.

"Hey babe!" He greeted her and kissed her passionately. "Wait...what are they doing here?" Joe asked when he spotted Nick and Kelly.

"Baby sit down, it's time I explain to you what's been going on." Nessa said and he nodded, sitting down in the chair and pulling her onto his lap.

"What is it Ness?"

"When Monty and I were married he introduced me to Nicky...a week after I met him we started having an affair that lasted for six months. I ended up breaking it off with him because I felt like I was betraying Monty and also because I fell in love with Nicky and felt like I was betraying him too since I couldn't give myself to him completely. Well, Nicky and I kept this hid...or at least we thought we did. You remember the day after you got hurt and I came downstairs to get you some ice?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Joe questioned, his voice calm and cool but she could see the anger in his eyes.

"Brandon was in the apartment that day. He told me that he knew about my affair with Nicky and if he got a title shot against you and I didn't help him win...then he would tell Monty." She explained.

"So, why are they here?" He asked, pointing to Nick and Kelly.

"Nick is here because he didn't want me to have to face this alone since we were both involved in the affair and Kelly is just here for a visit since we haven't seen each other in so long."

"Is it over between you two?" He questioned, looking at Nick.

"Yes. It has been for almost five years now and she is very much in love with you...otherwise she would not go through the pain of what happened here a couple of days ago and she would not even bother to tell you about our affair." Nick stated and Joe looked at him, confused.

"What happened a couple of days ago?"

"She asked me what I thought she should do and I told her that the only logical thing to do was to tell Monty about us so that Silvestry would have nothing to hold over her head. Aness finally agreed and called Monty to get him to come over, she told him about the affair and he ended up spitting in her face and kicking her in the stomach." Nick informed him and Nessa felt his body stiffen in anger.

"I'll kill him and Silvestry for starting this whole mess." Joe growled and Nick smiled.

"You'll have to get in line. Kelly already punched Monty's lights out for laying his hands on Aness but we both plan on getting our hands on Silvestry."

"No. You take care of Brown if you want but I have some unfinished business with Silvestry, after all he is the one who put Ness in the..." Joe's words were cut off by Nessa slapping her hand over his mouth and he looked at her in confusion.

"In the what?" Kelly asked and it dawned on Joe that they didn't know about her getting attacked.

"Nothing." Nessa spoke up.

"Aness let him tell us." Nick instructed and she sighed, moving her hand away from Joe's mouth. "Now, what happened?"

"He attacked Ness in the parking lot after tapings last week. That's why she's wearing a cast, he broke her wrist and gave her a concussion. We weren't together then because she was with him but we flirted shamelessly and I guess he didn't like it. So, I have no problem with you doing anything to Brown but Silvestry is mine."

"Why did you not tell us this?" Kelly questioned, looking at Nessa who sighed.

"Because I knew how you guys would react and I didn't want you doing anything stupid. You two are short-fused just like Joe is and I know all too well that your tempers can get the best of you sometimes."

Nick sat for a few minutes saying nothing until a evil smile slowly spread across his face. "Do either Daniels or Styles have a match at the next tapings?"

"They have a tag match against the Diamonds in the Rough...why?" Nessa asked, wondering what he had planned in his devious mind.

"Good. Kelly, you and I are going for a visit then. Will Brown or Silvestry be there as well?"

"Both. Brandon has an X Division match and Monty has a King of the Mountain qualifying match. What the hell are you planning Nicky?"

"A wonderful little thing called revenge. Kelly and I will take care of Brown, that you have nothing to worry about because you will have no part in it but does Silvestry know when Joe was supposed to come back?" He questioned.

"Not that I know of."

"Wonderful! This is where you come in...you and either Styles or Daniels will get Silvestry to come back here to talk about the deal you made with him and that's when Joe can get his revenge." Nick said, revealing the rest of his plan.

"I don't know Nicky..." Nessa trailed off, not sure if it would work.

"I think it's a great idea." Joe spoke up and she looked at him in shock.

"You do?"

"Yeah. It'll look suspicious if I'm there so you're gonna have to bring him here and I know that Chris or AJ won't let anything happen to you. Besides, if we try to do something at work we could all end up suspended or even worse...fired. It's the only way we're gonna get this thing ended once and for all and be able to move on with our lives, once we get married I don't want to have to be worrying about assholes like them fucking with us." Joe stated.

"All right. If you're sure then...let's do it."


	29. Chapter 29

"Chris? It's Nessa...we're here." Nessa stated, nervously switching her cell phone to the other ear as she Nick and Kelly stood outside the arena.

"AJ and I will be out in a minute." Chris said and hung up the phone.

"Well, they're on their way. If you guys want to change your minds about getting involved in this...now would be a good time." She told Nick and Kelly who shook their heads.

"No way! This is going to be too much fun, besides that they deserve everything they're going to get for messing with you." Kelly growled, cracking his knuckles and Nessa smiled. The back entrance door to the arena opened causing her to jump a little but she relaxed once she saw that it was AJ and Chris.

"All right...how are we going to do this?" AJ asked.

"I need one of you to get Alex Shelley for me. Joe's not gonna be happy about what I've got planned because I kinda left this part out but it's the only way to convince Brandon that I'm willing to 'turn my back' on Joe." Nessa said as the five of them walked into the arena and into Chris' locker room.

"Exactly what do you have planned?" Chris questioned.

"Just get Alex for me and you'll find out when he does." She instructed and he nodded, disappearing out of the room. "You guys have to promise me that you won't go calling Joe once you find out what my plan is. He has to stay home and keep his knee rested, besides that he's taking care of some personal business for us."

"Is something wrong between you two?" AJ asked.

"No, not at all. We're looking into buying our first house and he's waiting on the phone call to see if we got it or not." Nessa explained. Chris returned a few minutes later with Alex Shelley in tow.

"Whoa, whoa! I knew this was a bad idea." Alex mumbled, backing out of the room once he saw Kelly, Nick and AJ.

"Alex please, this isn't an ambush. I have nothing against you...as a matter of fact I'm quite fond of you. I just need to ask a favor from you." Nessa assured him.

Alex sighed in relief and stepped warily back into the room. "You're Nessa, right? Joe's girl?" He asked and she nodded. "I thought so. What did you need?"

"You see this?" She questioned, holding up her left wrist that was still in a cast. "Brandon Silvestry did it one night when he physically attacked me in the parking lot after finding out that I wasn't sure if I wanted to be with him or Joe."

"So, what does this have to do with me?"

"Brandon threatened to reveal a secret to my ex-husband Monty Brown that I had an affair with Sinn while we were married if I don't help him win the X Division title if he gets a shot at Joe. What he doesn't know is that I told Monty about the affair on my own the other day...this is where you come in. Tonight during your four-way X Division match I am going to 'interfere' and help Brandon win to show him that I'm truly willing to do what he wants. What I want to ask you, because you're the only one I trust out there is if you'd be willing to be the one I 'attack'? All I'm going to do is go out and maybe kick you a few times as gently as I can without making him suspicious so he can pick up the victory. After the match and he gets to the back my boys here will take things from there."

Alex sat taking everything in and thinking about what she had to say before a evil smile slowly spread across his face. "I would be more than happy to help you. I may have a lot of different ways than normal people but hitting women the way he did isn't one of them." He stated.

"Thank you so much Alex! You don't know how much this means to me." Nessa said, standing up to give him a quick hug. "It's probably best that you get out of here now but make sure no one sees you leave. I would however like to invite you over tomorrow for dinner."

"That would be great!" Alex stated and walked out of the room after checking to make sure he wouldn't be spotted.

"You do realize that you just assured all of us getting an ass chewing and maybe even a kicking by Joe, right?" AJ spoke up, laughing.

"I know he's not going to be happy but it's the only way."

"AJ and I will take care of Monty after his match tonight." Chris assured her and she nodded.

There was a knock on the door and Nessa looked around confusingly at everyone. "Who the hell could that be?" She whispered and they shrugged. "Nick, Kelly you two get in the bathroom and stay there until we find out." They looked as if they were going to protest but they knew there was no use in arguing with her, so they scurried to the bathroom and shut the door. Nessa opened the locker room door and sighed when she saw James Storm standing there.

"Hey darlin'! What took you so long?" He asked, stepping into the room.

"I wasn't sure who it was. Nick, Kelly, you two can come on out!" She called and the two men stepped out of the bathroom.

"Well I'll be damned. What the hell are you two doin' here?"

"We're here to get revenge on some assholes for hurting Aness." Nick explained and James looked at Nessa confused.

"I'd love to explain to you but...the first match has started. Walk me to the tunnel?" Nessa asked him and he nodded, smiling. "You guys keep an eye out, everything should be fine but just incase something happens be ready." She kissed them all on the cheek and left the room hand in hand with James.

Nessa watched on the monitor, waiting for the perfect time when it finally presented itself. Shark Boy and Alex were on the outside leaving just Brandon and Jay Lethal in the ring, she saw Alex trying to get back in the ring and after taking a deep breath she ran out of the tunnel and down to the ring.

She grabbed Alex's leg and pulled him off the apron while the ref was distracted with Jay and Brandon causing Alex to fall to the floor. Nessa bent down and punched Alex in the stomach as gently as she could. "I'm sorry Alex." She whispered then straightened up and kicked him a few times. She heard the bell ring and turned her attention to the ring to see that Brandon had indeed won the match. His eyes traveled over to where she was and gave her a slight, knowing smile. _What have I done?_ Nessa spotted Kevin Nash making his way to the ring and with a heavy heart she quickly made her way to the back.

"Vanessa!" Brandon calling her name stopped her and she turned to face him. "I see that you have truly made your decision...a wise choice my dear." He said, smirking.

"Yeah as a matter of fact it was. Too bad you're too stupid to realize when you've been played." Alex spoke up from behind him and he spun around.

"What the hell are you talking about boy?" Brandon asked.

Alex smiled a little when he saw Nick and Kelly step up on each side of Nessa. "Take a look for yourself man." Alex stated, pointing to Nessa.

Brandon turned back around and his eyes went wide. "What the fuck?"

"You see Brandon...when you decided to make your little threat I called Nicky and he took the first flight out here. We already told Monty about our affair so you have nothing to hold over my head, I mean did you honestly think that I would turn my back on Joe? Oh, you did! That's so sweet and so fucking stupid. So I called in a little favor to my new friend Alex and if you weren't so dumb you would've realized out there that those punches and kicks weren't real. He knew I was going to be out there and he agreed to help me. Now...now my dear Brandon it's time for a sweet little thing called 'revenge' for laying your hands on me. Boys? If you would." Nessa no sooner got that out and Nick and Kelly were all over him.

Alex walked over to Nessa and swung his arm around her shoulders. "You my dear are one vindictive chick."

"Aww Alex! I believe that is one of the sweetest things anyone has ever said to me." She giggled and kissed him on the cheek. "Come on, let's let my boys have a little bit of fun and we'll go back to Chris' locker room so I can give you mine and Joe's address." Nessa reached out and tapped Nick on the shoulder causing him to turn and look at her. "When you guys are finished here meet us back in Chris' locker room." She stated and walked off with Alex whose arm was still wrapped around her shoulders.

"So tell me, how did big bad Joe end up with such a sweet chick like you?"

"I like men with a dangerous edge and well...Joe has that more than most people. He's also a sweet teddy bear when he wants to be, not to mention the fact that he treats me like a queen." Nessa explained and Alex smiled.

"He's a damn lucky man." Alex said and she blushed. They walked into the locker room where Chris and AJ were waiting on them.

"Have fun out there?" Chris asked.

"Hell yes! Nick and Kelly are having their turns now." Nessa stated and grabbed a piece of paper out of her purse, quickly jotting down her address. "Here you go Alex, be at our place by six."

"Sure thing V.C.!" He replied, hugging her then left the room.

"V.C.?" AJ questioned.

"Vindictive Chick would be my guess, that's what he called me after I told Brandon off." Nick and Kelly walked into the room, huge smiles on both of their faces and their hands covered in blood. "Have fun?" She questioned.

"Of course Aness."

"Well, we'd love to stay but we've got a match." Chris spoke up, putting his ring coat and towel over his head.

"Good luck guys!" Nessa called as they walked out of the room. She turned her attention back to Nick and Kelly. "Aww my poor boys have blood all over their hands." Nessa walked over to Nick, took his hand and brought it to her lips, her tongue snaking out and swirling around the tip of his finger causing him to moan.

"Aness you shouldn't..." His protest was cut off when she slipped his finger in her mouth, sucking the blood off. She let go of his hand and he went into the bathroom to wash the rest of the blood off as she turned to Kelly and gave his hand the same treatment.

"You've always been such a damn tease." Kelly chuckled, watching her.

She let his finger slide out of her mouth with a POP and smiled. "Yeah I know." Her cell phone rang and she sighed. "Hello?"

"Babe? How's everything going?" Joe asked.

"Fine baby! Brandon's been taken care of and we'll have Monty delivered to you soon."

"Good, I just thought I'd call and see how you were doing."

"I'm fine. I'll be home soon, I love you." Nessa said.

"I love you too Ness." She hung up the phone and the three of them sat down to wait for Chris and AJ to do their part.


	30. Chapter 30

"You've been awfully quiet since what happened with Monty last night...is it bothering you?" Joe asked. He and Nessa were sitting on the couch, cuddled up and watching tv.

"Yeah it is a little I suppose, I mean he is my ex husband and a part of me still loves him but...that's not what's really bothering me."

"Then what is?"

Nessa sighed and got off the couch, grabbing a tape off the top of the tv she turned to Joe, her face unreadable. "I'm going to show you something and I hope that you'll at least let me explain what's on it before you get angry."

"Okay..." Joe was going to try his best to keep an open mind about what ever it was but he knew by the way she was acting that it wasn't going to be good. Nessa put the tape in the VCR and went to sit back down beside him. After taking a deep breath she pressed 'play' and Joe saw the Impact taping from that week start up.

He sat watching the four-way X Division match that Brandon was in, wondering what she wanted him to see until it finally became clear to him when he saw Nessa making her way down to the ring. "What the hell?" He questioned, looking over at her.

"Just watch then I'll explain."

Joe watched in utter confusion and horror as he saw Nessa attack Alex Shelley to keep him from climbing back in the ring and stop Brandon from getting the pin. After the match was over he turned to Nessa again a questioning look on his face. "Care to tell me just what the hell that was all about?"

"I knew that was the only way to get him to believe that I was going to truly turn my back on you so I spoke to Alex before the match and he agreed to help me. That's why I singled him out, after we got to the back Brandon stopped me and said that he saw I truly made my decision...that it was a wise one. Alex called him stupid to get his attention long enough for Kelly and Nicky to step up beside me then they took care of him while Alex walked me back to the locker room."

"Why didn't you tell me about this?"

"Because I knew if you found out about it you would've tried to stop me and I just couldn't let you do that. I love you with all my heart Joe but sometimes you treat me as if I'm made of glass, you have your fun each week by getting in that ring and kicking people's asses...I just needed this for me." Nessa stated and he sighed.

"I know I do and I'm sorry but I'd hate myself if anything ever happened to you again. When Silvestry attacked you and I got that phone call from Chris it nearly killed me because I felt like it was my fault."

"It wasn't though. I wanted to go home by myself that night because of what he did in the hall and also to think about my feelings for you. I knew I needed you in my life, there was never any doubt about that but I just wasn't sure of exactly how I needed you. Then when you got hurt it was like everything became so clear and I realized that I couldn't live my life without you by my side." Nessa kissed him gently and smiled. "You're the only man for me I hope you know that."

"I do. What time did you say Shelley was coming over?" He asked, glancing at the clock.

"Six."

"It's five now."

"Dammit!" She hissed, jumping up off the couch. "I gotta go put the chicken on." Nessa went into the kitchen and began preparing things for Rattlesnake Pasta. She heard the front door open and ran back into the living room only to find Nick and Kelly walking in. "Hey boys! Just in time, I'm starting dinner."

"Sounds good. What are we having?" Nick questioned, following her back in the kitchen.

"Your favorite...Rattlesnake Pasta." She said, putting the Alfredo sauce on to warm-up. Joe and Kelly came in to join them and sat down at the kitchen table.

"Did I hear you mention Rattlesnake Pasta?" Kelly asked and Nessa giggled.

"Yeah, Alex is coming over for dinner so I figured that's what I'd make. Could one of you get that pot and fill it a little over halfway with water?" She requested, pointing to a pot sitting on the counter.

"Got it!" Nick announced. He filled it up and sat it on the stove, discreetly giving her a kiss on the cheek while Joe was talking to Kelly. "Remember the first time you ever made this for me?" He whispered and she blushed as she thought back.

It hadn't been long after they started having their affair and they were at his house one night when he mentioned that he was hungry so Nessa offered to cook for him. Nick had walked into the kitchen to find her standing at the stove cooking away in nothing but an apron.

"I remember." The doorbell rang and she sighed in relief. "I'll get it!" Nessa raced into the living room, wanting to put as much distance between her and Nick as she could at the moment. She opened the door and smiled when she saw Alex standing there. "You made it."

"You know, you have very perverted neighbors." Alex stated, walking in the apartment.

"I do?"

"Yeah. The old woman at the end of the hall asked me if you were holding some kind of orgy in here because of all the men coming in here...are you?" He asked, his eyes lighting up.

"Alex!" Nessa gasped, blushing and he laughed.

"I'm just kidding, I know Joe would kill before he let something like that go on."

"Something like what?" Joe questioned, walking into the room.

"Old Mrs. Thomas asked Alex if we were having an orgy because of all the men that keep coming through here." Nessa told him and he chuckled.

"Doesn't sound like too bad of an idea."

"Joe!" She yelled, smacking him in the back of the head.

"Ow! Hey, I was just kidding."

"I know but still..." She trailed off, going back in the kitchen as he and Alex followed her.

"I didn't know the whole family was going to be here." Alex commented when he saw Kelly and Nick.

"They're not, we're missing three members."

"We are?" Kelly questioned.

"Of course. We're missing Chris, Allen and Andy. One night before you guys go back home we're all going to have to get together...you too Alex, you're part of the family now." Nessa said, smiling at him then turned her attention back to dinner.

"Aww I feel so loved."

"Yeah well, you better. She doesn't except new people in our family just like that...it usually takes a while." Nick spoke up.

"So, why me?" Alex asked.

"I told you last night that I'm quite fond of you. I like your style and your ring ability plus you just seemed like a really fun person to be around." Nessa stated and he blushed a little.

"Thanks. What do you have to do around here while we're waiting for dinner?"

"Joe, honey why don't you take Alex out and show him what's on the deck?"

"You got it babe."

She watched him walk out of the apartment with Alex trailing behind him then she turned to Nick. "I don't know what you're trying to do but whatever it is...you need to stop."

"What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean Nicky, reminding me of the first time I made this for you wasn't right to do and you know it."

"Aness we have always done stuff like that when we get together so what's so different now?" He asked.

"The difference is that I'm engaged to be married."

"You were married when we had our affair!" Nick pointed out, standing up and walking over to her.

"It's not the same Nicky...I'm not the same."

"Yes you are! If you're so different then why did you do what you did to Kelly and I in the locker room last night?"

"I shouldn't have, that was my mistake and I admit it. All I'm asking is that you respect me enough to stop what ever it is that you are trying to do." Nessa stated.

"Fine. I promise not to do anything else to you that you don't want me to...unless you choose to start something."

"Thank you. Now, will you please go tell Joe and Alex that it's time to eat?"

"Sure." He went out on the deck only to return a few minutes later with Joe and Alex following him. The five of them sat down and ate dinner then decided to go back out on the deck and spend some time in the hot tub where they talked about what their moves would be should Monty or Brandon choose to retaliate.

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**A/N: For anyone who doesn't know the dish that Nessa made for dinner it is made with chicken cut up into pieces then put in Alfredo sauce and it's all mixed together with spaghetti noodles. It's quite delicious and I've made it a few times for my family who loves it!**


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: No reviews for the last chapter? I'm crushed! lol j/k It's cool because I had a blast writing it as well as this chapter, my new Alex Shelley muse is a lot of fun to play with (In many more ways than one wink wink lol). If you're not sure what I mean you might want to go back and read the one right before this one, it was so much fun for me to write and I had a great time. I only have one other thing to say and that's a quick plug for Joe... his Unstoppable DVD will be coming out June 6th (I'll be the first in line lol) so if you're a fan of his like I am be sure to go out and pick it up! On to the chapter now, please review and let me know what you think!**  
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"I can't believe we just did that!" Nessa giggled as she, Joe, Chris and Allen walked into the arena. "I'm...married." She whispered, looking down at the rings on her left hand, still unable to process the fact that she and Joe had got married not even an hour before they got to the arena.

"Having second thoughts already?" Joe asked.

"Not at all, I'm just still in shock. I want to thank you and Chris for being there though." Nessa said to Allen and he smiled.

"We wouldn't have missed it for the world."

"What's on the agenda tonight baby?"

"I have an interview to give answers as to why I left Steve in the ring by himself and my views on Scott Steiner." Joe stated and she sighed.

"Are they still on that shit?"

"Of course." The four of them walked into Joe's locker room and Nessa sat down on the couch. "You can sit this one out if you want, I already talked to Larry about it."

"Yeah I think I better." She growled and he laughed. "I'm going to go visit Alex, do you mind?"

"Go ahead...if anything happens and you need me just give me a call."

"I will." Nessa stood up, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. "I love you Mr. Seannoa."

"And I love you Mrs. Seannoa." He reached down and smacked her ass causing her to giggle then she left the locker room.

"Hey darlin'!" James Storm yelled and she turned around to see him and Chris Harris walking towards her.

"Just in time boys, you can walk me to Alex's locker room."

"What are you going there for?" Chris asked.

"To visit. Joe has that interview tonight that we've decided I'm sitting out this time, we don't want everyone knowing our secret yet." Nessa said, smiling.

"What secret would that be?" James questioned right as they arrived at Alex's locker room. Nessa giggled and held up her left hand, allowing them both to see her wedding rings. "You guys got married? When?"

"Yes, we got married this morning before coming here. Chris and Allen were with us as well as Kelly Wolfe and Nick Cvjetkovich." She stated and knocked on the door which was quickly opened by Alex.

"V.C.!" Alex greeted her and she laughed as they shared a hug. "What are you doing here?"

"Thought I'd come and visit ya. Joe has an interview tonight to give his answers as to why he left Steve in the ring by himself at the pay-per-view and I'm sitting this one out."

"Well, come on in then." He said and stepped aside so she, Chris and James could walk in. "Why aren't you going to be with him during the interview?"

"Not in my list of wifely duties."

"The FUCK? You two got married?" Alex asked, eyes wide and Nessa laughed.

"Yeah, we got married just this morning."

"Holy shit! Congratulations!" He stated and hugged her again.

"Thanks Alex."

"Hey darlin'? Chris and I gotta go, our match is first up tonight." James spoke up and Nessa turned her attention to him.

"Aww damn. All right, I guess I can let the two of you go for now." She said and they both laughed.

"Well, that's good to know. I don't think your hubby would be too happy with you keeping the two of us hostage." Chris laughed. He and James both gave her a hug then walked out of the locker room leaving just Nessa and Alex.

"So, how does it feel being an old married woman?" Alex joked.

"I'll have you know Mr. Shelley that I'm only three years older than you are." Nessa teased, punching him lightly in the arm. "Hey! I just had an idea...do you have any plans for tonight?"

"Not really, why?"

"Let me call Joe and you'll find out." Nessa pulled her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Joe's number.

"Hello?"

"Baby it's me..."

"What's wrong? Is everything okay?" Joe asked, worriedly.

"Everything's fine Joe, I just called to see if you wanted to get the whole family together tonight to celebrate us getting married."

"Sounds like a good idea to me. I'll talk to Chris and Allen about it so why don't you and Alex go talk to Andy?"

"Fine with me, we'll stop by the locker room once we talk to him and let you know what's going on." She stated.

"All right...just be careful. I love you."

"I will and I love you too babe." Nessa hung up the phone and turned to Alex. "Want to walk with me to find Andy?"

"Sure thing Nessa." The two of them left the locker room in search of Andy Douglas. "There he is." Alex said, pointing down the hall with his back to them, talking to Chase Stevens.

Nessa smiled evilly and motioned for Chase to be quiet. She snuck up behind Andy and poked him in both sides causing him to jump and turn around, ready to fight who ever it was until he saw Nessa standing there giggling. "Hey Andy, Chase." She giggled.

"Hey Nessa." Chase greeted her, laughing at Andy's reaction to what she did to him.

"Haha very funny Nessa, what's up?"

"Alex and I were wondering if we could talk to you for a minute."

"Sure." He followed them back down the hall and into Alex's locker room. "What's going on?"

"Joe and I are planning a celebration and we want to get the whole family together."

"What are we celebrating?" Andy questioned and Nessa smiled brightly.

"We got married this morning!" She exclaimed, showing him her rings.

"You did? Oh damn, I'm happy for you!" He said, hugging her. "I'll be there for sure...where's it going to be?"

"We haven't got that figured out yet but I'll let you know before the show ends tonight."

"Okay, make sure you do. Damn...I can't believe my little sister got married." Andy stated, smiling.

"I can't believe it either. I suppose you should know that a new member was brought into the family." Nessa informed him.

"Who?"

"That would be me." Alex spoke up.

"Really?" Andy asked, shocked.

"Yeah, I've been fond of him for a while now and he helped me out when Nicky, Kelly and I wanted to get revenge on Brandon for what he did to me."

"But didn't you attack him last week?"

"That was all a plan. I had spoke to him before the match and told him what happened, he agreed to help and the next day he came over for dinner." Nessa explained and Andy nodded.

"As long as everyone else in the family has accepted him then I will too." He said, holding his hand out to Alex who quickly shook it. "Damn! I gotta go, my match is gonna be up soon."

"Be careful out there Andy." Nessa told him, kissing his cheek. The three of them walked out of the locker room together with Andy heading one way and her and Alex heading the other. "I gotta go tell Joe what's going on so we can figure out where we're gonna have this thing." They walked into Joe's locker room and found him sitting on the couch watching the show on the monitor.

"Hey babe! Did you find Andy?" He questioned, pulling her into his lap.

"Yeah and he said he wants to come but we gotta figure out where we're gonna have this thing, our apartment is too damn small." She said, leaning back against his chest.

"Well, I didn't want to tell you this yet because I wanted it to be a surprise but since we need a place to have the party I suppose I can tell you..."

"Tell me what?"

"There's a reason Nick and Kelly aren't here today...we got the house and they offered to stay back and take care of the movers." Joe stated and she looked at him in shock.

"We got the house?"

"Yeah Ness, we got the house." Nessa squealed in delight and hugged him, placing small kisses all over his face as he laughed. "I take it you're happy?"

"Of course I am! I love that house, I can't believe we actually got it. I'll tell Andy after his match...he probably rode with Chase so do you mind if he rides back with us?"

"Not at all, you can ride with us too if you want." Joe offered, looking at Alex.

"As long as you guys don't mind, sure. I need to be getting back though...I have a promo and a match coming up."

"I'll tell you the same thing I told Andy then, be careful out there." Nessa said, hugging him.

"I will don't worry, I'll see you guys later." He stated and walked out of the room.

"The first match is over so why don't I walk you to the tunnel for you to wait on Andy? I have to come back here so they can set up for my interview." Joe told her, rolling his eyes and Nessa sighed.

"All right I suppose, give me your ring first." Joe smiled and took his wedding band off, watching as Nessa slipped it in her pocket. "There. Safe and sound until after you get done." She stated, kissing him.

Two hours later Joe, Nessa, Alex and Andy all piled in his car as they waited for Chris and Allen to pull up behind them. Once they spotted both cars Joe pulled out of the arena parking lot and headed to his and Nessa's new house.


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: Okay I'm having a shit load of trouble with people being able to review this story which was brought to my attention by one of my readers (Thank you Perfect Imperfections!). So, I'm going to send this author's note and try to push it through. If someone would be so kind as to try and review this just to let me know if it works before I even try to post another chapter, if it doesn't work I'm going to have to repost the whole damn story and I don't want to because I'd probably lose all the reviews I do have now. So, I am once again asking if someone will please be so kind and try to send a review to this author's note just to tell me it worked. Thank you!**

**SamoaJoe4Ever**


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: Yay! All your reviews for my authors note came through so it looks like fit that they were throwing is over now (hopefully)! I just want to thank everyone who reviewed to my request, I was hoping to get one review to let me know if it worked and ended up getting four. A couple of important notes about this chapter before you move on so PLEASE READ! 1. Pay close attention and see if you can figure out the true relationship that Kelly, Nick and Nessa used to have so many years ago. 2. You're in for a BIG surprise and shock at the end of this chapter so be prepared! I promise that I will not take too long in getting the next one up seeing as my wanting to write it got renewed with this sudden new twist, I hope you all enjoy it. Please review (if you can lol) and let me know what you think!**

Nessa stood in awe of the house after Joe had pulled in the driveway and she got out of the car, still unable to believe that they had finally got it after all the trouble they went through. She felt Joe walk up behind her and wrap his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder. "It's absolutely beautiful Joe." She whispered.

"And it's all ours now babe just like we dreamed of." He said, kissing her neck and Nessa smiled. "You know you forgot to give me my ring back right?" She gasped and reached into her pocket, pulling out his wedding ring.

Nessa turned around in his arms and grabbed his left hand in hers, sliding the ring on his finger as she leaned up to kiss him. "I love you Joe."

"I love you too Ness...we had better get inside before they tear the place apart." He laughed and she growled playfully.

"They do and I'll castrate them all." Nessa stated, walking hand in hand with Joe into their new house.

"Hey, I heard that!" Allen called out, laughing.

"Yeah and I meant it too!" Nessa called back, laughing as well. She went to say something else but before she had the chance someone came flying in the room and she was lifted on someone's shoulders. "What the hell?" Nessa struggled to look up, immediately recognizing the blonde streak in Alex's hair. "Alex Shelley put me down this instant!"

"Hey V.C. did you know you guys had a pool in the back yard?" He asked, his voice full of mischief.

"Alex don't you..." Before Nessa could finish her threat she went flying through the air and landed with a big splash in the pool. She came up sputtering out water and gasping for air, a pissed off look on her face that didn't last long as Alex came flying in the pool beside her and she broke out into a fit of laughter. Nessa waited for him to surface but when he didn't she became concerned until she felt someone between her legs and looked down just in time to see him lifting her up on his shoulders. "Dammit Shelley! You scared the living hell out of me!" She scolded him, hitting the top of his head.

"Ow! Hey!" He protested then without warning he fell backwards, dunking her into the water yet again.

"Would someone get out here and help me before I severely injure this guy?" Nessa called into the house once she surfaced, hoping to get a little help from someone until she saw them all standing at the back door laughing at her and Alex. "Oh fuck all of you!" She huffed.

"Ooh! Are we gonna have that orgy now?" Alex questioned, laughing and Nessa splashed him.

"Joe could you at least get me a towel? Or I could just get out and give everybody a show seeing as I'm wearing a white shirt." She said and started to get out of the pool.

"Stay right where you are Ness!" They all watched in amusement as Joe ran to the bathroom, grabbed a towel and ran it out to her. "Ain't nobody seeing what's mine." Joe stated playfully as she got out of the pool and he wrapped the towel around her.

"One of use already has!" Allen called out and they all turned to look at him in shock. "I was talking about Nick you perverts."

"That's us...one big perverted family." Nessa laughed.

"Aww come on Allen admit it, you've always wanted a peek." Alex teased him.

"Screw you Shelley!" Allen commented.

"Nah! You're not my type, Nessa on the other hand..."

"Is mine." Joe growled and she giggled, running her hand over his chest.

"Down big man it was just a joke." She whispered seductively at him causing him to growl again and pull her roughly against him. "I'm all wet Joe." Nessa whined then immediately regretted it when she saw the evil look that crossed over his face. "I didn't mean it like that!"

"Damn, guess I'll just have to fix that huh?" He grabbed a handful of her hair and pulled her head back until she was looking up at him, Joe brought his lips down on hers in a roughly passionate kiss making her forget momentarily that there was anyone else around them. He pulled away from the kiss slowly but not before biting her bottom lip causing her eyes to go wide in shock. "I had a very long talk with Nick...he let me in on a few details about things you've never told me you like." Joe whispered in her ear and Nessa felt her insides melt. "So, did I fix it?" He asked, smiling evilly.

Nessa went to answer him but no sound would come from her mouth so she cleared her throat and tried again. "Y...yes." She stammered and Joe chuckled. "Now, if you'll excuse me...I've got to go kill someone." Nessa growled, moving out of his arms. Joe watched in amusement as she walked on shaky legs towards the house. "NICKY!"

"Oh shit!" Nick exclaimed when he saw her coming towards him. He didn't know at first what he had done until he saw the look in her eyes, a look he himself had put there so many times before. "Aness I had to tell him." He said, backing away from her as Chris, Allen, Alex, Andy and Kelly all laughed at the two.

"Are you telling me he held a gun to your head?"

"Well, no but...I knew you were never going to tell him and I know how much you hate hiding that." Nick tried to reason with her, still backing up. "Kelly help me out here!"

"Aness stop." Kelly spoke up and the other four men watched in amazement as she did exactly what he told her to.

"Ness?" Joe questioned and she turned slightly to look at him. "Come here." Nessa growled and walked quickly over to him. "Now I understand why that has such an effect on you." He laughed.

"Shut up and kiss me dammit!"

"Ooh such a demanding little vixen." Alex said, laughing.

"Bite me Shelley." Nessa stated, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Not my job, it's his." Alex replied, pointing to Joe.

"Oh yeah?" She asked, smiling at Alex then turned to Joe. "Why don't you do your job then baby?" Joe growled and bent down, biting the side of her neck. "Fuck!" Nessa exclaimed when he pulled away and she sighed. "I'll be right back, one of you order some pizza." With that said she ran back outside and jumped in the pool hoping the cold water would have the desired effect of cooling her off.

"Need a cool down?" Nick questioned and Nessa turned to see him sitting on the edge of the pool wearing nothing but a pair of swimming trunks.

"Yeah and that isn't helping." Nessa said, pointing to the tattoo that was just barely peeking over the edge of his trunks causing Nick to laugh.

"You always did love it."

"Correction...I always loved doing things to it." She stated, thinking back to the first time she discovered it and spent almost thirty minutes kissing and licking it.

"I guess this won't help either." Kelly said, coming outside with no shirt on and Nessa growled at the sight of the tattoo that spread across his chest.

"Are you two gonna tease me all night or you coming in to swim?"

"Is it safe?" Nick joked and she splashed him. "Oh that's it!" He jumped in the pool as Nessa scrambled to the other side. She turned around to see where he was but saw no sign of him until she felt something against her legs. Nessa looked down and saw he had her shirt lifted and felt him placing a kiss on her stomach, something he always used to do.

_I'm married, I'm married, I'm married._ Nessa kept telling herself as she now felt four hands on her instead of just two. Finally unable to take what they were doing to her and unable to take the guilt she moved away from them and swam to the other side of the pool.

"What is it Aness?" Kelly asked, the first one to arrive by her side.

"I can't...I just can't. Oh hell, do I want to but I can't." She whispered.

"You really love him don't you?" Nick questioned, moving to her other side.

Nessa sighed and looked into the house where Joe was sitting, talking and laughing with Alex and Chris. "Yes, yes I do. That doesn't that I don't love you two because god knows I always will, it's just that...Joe's my life now and there's something that even he doesn't know yet."

"What is it?"

"I can't tell you, I want him to be the first to know. Could you guys go in and tell him to come out here?" Nessa asked and they both nodded as they got out of the pool but stopped right before they reached the door.

"By the way Aness...we love you too." Kelly said then they walked into the house. The back door opened a few minutes later and Joe stepped out smiling at Nessa and holding a new shirt for her.

"Here you go babe. Nick and Kelly said you have something to talk to me about?"

Nessa got out of the pool and stepped far enough away from the house so no one could see her then she changed her shirt and sighed. "Have a seat Joe." She whispered.

"Uh oh, this doesn't sound good." Joe stated, sitting down on one of the lawn chairs. "What is it?"

Nessa took a deep breath and looked into his eyes to gauge his reaction to what she was about to tell him. "Joe...I'm pregnant."

**A/N 2: Wow! Big shock there huh? It even surprised me lol. I just wanted to let you know real quick that if decides to fuck up again and not allow the reviews to come through I welcome PM's from you and would enjoy if you wrote me that way and told me what you think but that's only if you can't review!**


	34. Chapter 34

"_Joe...I'm pregnant."_ Those three words played over and over again in Joe's head as he sat staring up at Nessa in shock. "You're...pregnant?"

"Yes and to sooth any doubts in your mind, I'm six weeks along so there's no possible way it can be Brandon's...you're the Father Joe." Nessa told him, still waiting to see what his reaction was going to be.

"I'm going to be a Dad?" He asked, still trying to comprehend the major news that she had just given him.

"You're upset about it...dammit, I knew this wasn't the right time!" She stated sadly and began to walk away but he grabbed her wrist before she could get very far and Nessa turned around to find him standing there with a big smile on his face and tears in his eyes.

"I'm going to be a Dad!" Joe exclaimed, picking her up and twirling her around in circles as they both laughed then his eyes went wide in worry as he realized what he was doing and immediately sat her down gently on her feet. "Oh god! Are you okay? Is the baby okay?"

"I'm fine Joe, please don't start treating me like I'm made of glass again." Nessa begged him and he smiled.

"I won't, I just want us both to be careful...we're having a baby and that's the most important thing."

"Everything okay out here?" Allen asked, stepping outside.

"Yeah, we were just coming in anyway." Joe said, taking Nessa by the hand and they both walked back into the house following Allen. "Anybody leave yet?"

"No, why?" Allen questioned, noticing for the first time the excited expression on Joe's face.

"We've got some news." He replied, trying his best not to give anything away.

"They're in the living room drinking beers."

"HA! Why am I not surprised by that?" Nessa giggled. "Joe grab us something to drink, would you?" She asked, winking at him to let him know not to get her anything she shouldn't have and he nodded.

Joe grabbed a beer and a bottle of water from the fridge then turned around and handed the bottle of water to Nessa. "Here you go babe." He said, kissing her on the cheek. She smiled and they followed Allen on into the living room. "Everybody be quiet, we got something to tell you!" Joe shouted and they all stopped talking.

"Damn! I needed you around a long time ago baby." Nessa laughed, sitting down on Joe's lap after he sat down on a chair.

"Shove it Nessa." Chris spoke up, laughing.

"Hey! That's my line, don't go stealing it...you don't hear me going around saying 'And that's the gospel according to Vanessa' do you?" She teased him and dodged a couch pillow that came flying at her head only to have it hit Joe instead.

"You are so lucky I'm in a good mood Daniels!" Joe growled, trying to sound angry but failing miserably.

"Yeah, so, you're in a good mood...what happened? Nessa give you some outside?" Alex asked, grinning evilly.

"I swear I'm surrounded by a bunch of horny men!" Nessa grumbled, her head falling back against Joe's shoulder.

"No, but she did give me something almost as good." Joe stated, smiling brightly.

"What?" Andy questioned.

"You wanna tell them or should I?" He asked Nessa.

"You go ahead, I'm too comfortable to move." She murmured, snuggling closer to him.

"Ness is six weeks pregnant!" Joe exclaimed and saw them all doing the math in their head trying to figure out whether it was him or Brandon that was the Father. Chris was the first one to figure it out because he jumped up off the couch as his eyes went wide and he ran over to Nessa, grabbing her gently off Joe's lap and enveloping her in a hug causing her to laugh.

"You've got everything you want now." Chris whispered to her and she nodded against his shoulder.

"A wonderful, loving husband and a baby on the way...what more could a girl ask for?" Nessa asked, tears welling up in her eyes. She heard the front door open and close and looked up from Chris' shoulder to find Nick missing and Kelly giving her a look that she recognized instantly and her heart dropped. "Dammit!" She hissed, breaking away from Chris. "Joe, I've gotta go find Nicky and talk to him...I'll explain why later I promise. Kelly, come with me please?" She gave Joe a quick kiss then walked quickly out the front door with Kelly trailing behind her.

Kelly spotted Nick getting ready to get in his car and pointed him out to Nessa. "There he is Aness."

"Nicky, stop! Please!" She called out and sighed when Nick stopped, standing beside his car. "Nicky I'm _so_ sorry! I got caught up in mine and Joe's happiness that I forgot momentarily the pain that we suffered." Nessa whispered, reaching out to touch his shoulder and winced when she felt his body tense up.

"I never forget, it haunts me each and every day...I see her face every time I close my eyes. I still feel her tiny hand in mine, clinging to me as her life slipped from her body. Aness what did we do so wrong that Serenity was taken from us?" He asked, slowly turning to her and even in the dimly lit driveway she could see the pain and sorrow in his eyes.

"I honestly don't know Nicky but I wish to god that I did. Come back inside, please? There's something that I want to give you." Nessa whispered, holding her hand out to him and he slipped his hand in hers.

They walked back into the house with Kelly following them and no one said a word. By the look on their faces Nessa could tell that Chris had told them what happened and she looked over at Joe who was watching them both with sadness in his eyes. "We'll be right back." She mouthed to him and he nodded. Nessa grabbed her purse and bag that she always took to the arena as she led Nick to the bedroom. "Sit down Nicky." She said, pointing to the bed.

"You're not going to molest me are you?" He asked, smiling weakly and she laughed a little.

"Not this time sweetie." She pulled a photo album out of her bag and sat down on the bed beside him. "Here, I want you to look at this but you need to be prepared for what you are going to see."

Nick took a deep breath and opened the cover, gasping when he saw the very first ultrasound photo that she had done. "Is that..."

"Yes Nicky, that's our Daughter." Nessa whispered, sliding her arm through his and moved closer to him.

Nick thumbed through the rest of the pages that included other ultrasound photos, the announcement of her pregnancy, the paternity test proving him to be the Father, photos of Nick holding their Daughter after she was born and finally one last photo of her headstone. He closed the cover and sighed, wiping quickly at the tears that threatened to fall. "Is this mine?"

"Yes Nicky, I have another one that's exactly the same. There's one more thing though and I'm telling you right now...this is going to be a lot tougher than that book, are you okay with it?"

"Yeah." Nick watched as she picked up her purse and got something out of it that he didn't recognize right away until she placed it in his hand. He closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath then looked down at the small cross necklace he had placed on his Daughter's neck the day she was born. "You kept this?"

"Of course I did, you gave it to her and I knew that one day you might want it back." She explained and watched him clinging to the necklace as if it were a lifeline. "Nicky she's still with us both in our hearts, she always will be and nothing will ever change that. A part of me will always love you for giving me her and for being there when I needed you the most."

"I'll always love you too Aness." He said, hugging her. "Kelly and I are staying in the guest rooms but we're leaving tomorrow night...I promise you that it won't be another five years before the three of us see each other again."

"I hope it's not Nicky, I really do."

"It won't be." Nick kissed her on the cheek and walked out of the room carrying the photo album and necklace with him. Nessa laid back on the bed and allowed the tears to fall that she had been holding in because of Nick.

"Babe?" Joe's soft voice entered the room and she could barely lift her head from crying so hard. "Oh Ness." He walked over to the bed, sat down and pulled her into his lap, holding her as she cried into his chest.

"Did Chris tell you the whole story?" Nessa asked when her tears had subsided.

"Not really, just enough for us to know what was going on and not harass you guys when you came back in. Do you feel up to telling me?" He questioned and she nodded.

"Monty and I were still married but we weren't...having sex anymore so that's why Nicky and I started an affair. By the time our affair ended, my marriage to Monty was also ending so we got divorced and not long after that I found out I was pregnant. I knew who's it was right away but Nicky wanted to be sure and I told him that was fine so I got a paternity test done and it did indeed prove that he was the Father. Well, Nicky moved in with me and took care of me while I was pregnant. Our relationship was going so good until after our Daughter was born...she caught pneumonia and wasn't strong enough to fight it off but I'll be damned if she didn't have Nicky's willpower and tried her hardest to fight it off...Serenity died when she was only three weeks old. After she died Nicky wasn't able to handle it and our relationship just fell apart, he moved away again and I stayed here." By the time she was finished telling everything Nessa was in tears again and could barely hold her eyes open.

"You're tired, get some sleep and I'll make sure everyone gets out okay then I'll come to bed." Joe lifted her off his lap and undressed her then put her under the covers.

"I love you Joe."

"I love you too Ness." He stood in the doorway of the bedroom until he heard her breathing even out then he turned around and walked out of the room.


	35. Chapter 35

The next morning Nessa woke up to the sun shining in the window and immediately her heart felt heavy as she remembered that this was the day Nick and Kelly were going back home so she got out of bed as quietly as she could to go spend some time with them.

"Where you going babe?" Joe asked and she jumped in surprise.

"You're awake."

"Yeah, you were having nightmares most of the night so I tried to stay awake the best I could to make sure you were okay."

"I'm sorry. I was just going to go ask Nicky if he wanted to go visit Serenity's grave before they go back home." Nessa explained and he nodded.

"Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, I think we better do this on our own."

"All right. Just be careful and call me if you need anything." Joe told her.

"I will." She gave him a kiss then quickly got dressed and went to go wake up Nick. "Nicky?" Nessa whispered, shaking his shoulder lightly. His eyes fluttered open and he smiled at her.

"Morning."

"Good morning...I was wondering if you wanted to go visit Serenity's grave before you guys go back home?" Nessa saw his face fall and her heart broke in two.

"Yeah, I'd like that. Just give me a few minutes to get dressed." She nodded and turned to walk out of the room but he grabbed her hand. "You don't have to go anywhere, I don't have anything you haven't seen before."

"Yes, I do have to go." Nessa stated and walked out of the room without another word. A few minutes later Nick emerged from the bedroom completely dressed. "You ready?"

"Not really but let's go anyway."

"Where are you guys going?" Kelly asked, stepping out of the other guest bedroom.

"To the cemetery...we'll be back soon." Nick told him.

"All right, be careful and I'll see you when you get back." He said, hugging Nessa tightly.

Nick and Nessa left the house and drove in silence to the cemetery. She quickly scanned the area and spotted their Daughter's tombstone. "There it is." Nessa pointed out and Nick took her hand before taking a deep breath then they both walked over to it.

_Serenity Paige Cvjetkovich_

_March 1st 2000 - March 22nd 2000_

"_Sometimes life's precious gifts are taken away too soon."_

"I miss her so much." Nick whispered, kneeling down in front of the tombstone and brushing off some weeds.

"I know Nicky, I miss her too." Nessa replied, tears falling from her eyes as she knelt beside him. "She looked so much like you when she was born."

"Yeah but she had your eyes...why did she have to die Aness?" He asked, turning to her.

"I wish I knew Nicky, oh god I wish I knew." She stated, crying and he took her in his arms.

Nick sat there holding Nessa for a while as she cried until her tears finally subsided. "I wish Kelly and I didn't have to go today and I wish...no, I'd better not say anything." Nick said and she looked at him, confused.

"Tell me, please?"

"I wish that...you would go with me. I want things to be the way they used to be." He admitted.

"Nicky I can't. Sometimes, I'll admit that I also want things the way they used to be but...they never can be. My life is here now with Joe, he's given me everything back that I thought I had lost forever. We're having a child together and as much as that hurts you and I because of Serenity...I'm happy that I'm pregnant with Joe's child. We've been through hell and back since we first got together and we've stood tall in the end side by side now as husband and wife. I'll also admit that some of the things I did to you and Kelly when you first got here weren't fair to you guys or Joe and I regret that because I love Joe with all that I am and I don't want anything to come between us."

"I understand that and I'm sorry that I brought it up."

"Don't be, you can't help how you feel and I never would want you to hide that from me because I still do love you." Nessa said, hugging him tightly.

"I love you too Aness. We had better get back now." He told her, leaning over to place a soft kiss on the tombstone. "I'll be back to see you soon little one." Nick stood up and helped Nessa to her feet then they left the cemetery.

"You two okay?" Joe asked when they got back to the house.

"We will be, it just takes a lot out of both of us to go there." Nessa stated, cuddling up to his side on the couch and watched Nick and Kelly talking as they packed their bags in Nessa's car. _I wonder what they're talking about._

"Aness we're ready." Kelly informed her, stepping inside the front door.

"Okay, be there in a minute." He nodded and walked back outside. "I won't be gone too long baby. Just long enough to drop them off at the airport and say goodbye."

"Be careful and call me if anything happens." Joe said, kissing her. "Love you babe."

"Love you too." She walked out of the house, smiling at Nick and Kelly and trying not to seem to sad. "You guys ready?"

"No but we have to go anyway." Kelly spoke up, a strange look on his face and she knew something was going on.

"Everything okay?"

"Just fine." Nick told her and she nodded. The three of them got in her car and headed off to the airport, none of them saying much at all and she could just feel that something was wrong. "Walk us to the gate?" Nick asked when they were inside the airport.

"Of course." Nessa replied. When they arrived at the gate Nick turned his back to her and handed the plane tickets to the stewardess and suddenly Kelly wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, careful not to push on her stomach too hard. "Kelly what are you doing?" She asked but he wouldn't answer her and that's when she noticed three plane tickets in the stewardess' hand. _Oh god, no!_ Nessa struggled to get away from Kelly but he was too strong for her. "Dammit Kelly let me go!"

Kelly just stood there, holding her and watching Nick. He waited for him to get past the gate, knowing that once he was past it he couldn't come back. Once he stepped over the line Kelly let go of Nessa and she turned to look at him, anger written all over her face. "Go, get out of here! Now, before he realizes what I'm doing...he's gone insane Aness." Kelly hissed at her and she nodded. She leaned up and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek then ran away from the gate ignoring Nick calling for her to come back.

Nessa got in her car and drove for about five minutes before tears flooded her eyes so bad that she could hardly see and had to pull over. She pulled her cell phone from her purse and dialed the number to her house, hoping like hell Joe would pick up soon.

"Hello?"

"J..Joe?" Nessa stammered.

"Ness? Babe? You're crying, what is it? What happened?"

"Oh god Joe, it was awful!" She exclaimed.

"What was babe? Tell me what happened." He urged her.

"I felt something was wrong before we left the house but didn't pay much attention to it...then when we got to the airport Nicky asked me if I'd walk them to the gate and I told him that I would. When we got there I didn't see it at first but he...he handed the stewardess three tickets, Kelly grabbed me around the waist and I struggled to get away but he wouldn't let me go. He waited for Nicky to get past the gate so he couldn't come back and then let me go, told me to get out of there before Nicky realized what he was doing...he said Nicky had gone insane."

"He was going to take you against your will?" Joe demanded to know and she could heard the anger in his voice.

"Yes! Oh god Joe, I'm so scared!"

"Shh babe, it's okay now. Where are you?" He asked and Nessa looked around, spotting a McDonald's.

"I'm at the McDonald's that's about five minutes from the airport."

"Stay there, lock the car doors and I'll be there soon." Joe instructed.

"Please hurry."

"I will babe. Just do what I told you and remember that I love you."

"I love you too." Nessa hung up the phone and pulled into the McDonald's parking lot, locking all her doors and clutching to her cell phone tightly, jumping when it suddenly rang. "H...hello?"

"Nessa it's Chris. Joe called me and told me what happened, we're about a minute away from McDonald's."

"Hurry Chris, please."

"We're here sweetie. I can see your car, look straight ahead." Chris told her and she did what he said, spotting Chris' car. No sooner had he parked and Joe jumped out of the car, racing up to Nessa's car. She unlocked the doors and got out, falling into his arms as tears streamed down her face.

"Oh Joe!" She cried, clinging tightly to him.

"Shh Ness. I got you now, nothing's gonna happen to you." He whispered as he rubbed her back. "Is the baby okay?"

"Yeah. Kelly made sure when he held on to me not to squeeze my stomach."

"Are you okay? Did Nick hurt you in any way?"

"No, I got away from him before anything happened." Nessa replied, her tears slowing down as he held on to her. "I was so scared that I'd never see you again Joe."

"You don't have to worry about that now...I'm here and I'm not going anywhere and neither are you. Let's go home, I'll take Ness' car Chris."

"Okay, I'll follow you guys there. Are you okay Nessa?" Chris asked, smiling when she moved out of Joe's arms long enough to give him a quick hug.

"Yes and thank you so much."

"There's no need to thank me. You're one of my best friends and you were in trouble." She smiled and moved back into Joe's arms.

"I want to go home now."

"Let's go then." Joe said, opening the car door for her then he climbed in the drivers side and drove to their house with her curled up at his side.


	36. Chapter 36

It was the next week and Nessa sat in Joe's locker room at the Impact Zone with the door locked while Joe went out and had a confrontation with Scott Steiner. Joe hadn't left her side much since the day Nick tried to take her on the plane with him because he wanted to be there to protect her and their baby. Throughout the week Alex, Allen, Andy, James and Chris Harris had all stopped by to see her and make sure she was really okay. Nessa's thoughts were interrupted by her cell phone ringing and not even thinking to bother to check the caller id she answered it. "Hello?"

"Aness?" Nick's voice flooded the line and she gasped. "Please don't hang up."

"What the hell do you want?" She snapped, trying to hide the fear in her voice.

"I wanted to explain myself."

"There's nothing to explain! You tried to get Kelly to help you kidnap me and take me on a plane against my will knowing that I didn't want to go with you."

"It wasn't like that..." He trailed off and Nessa laughed bitterly.

"Oh then please, by all means, enlighten me to how it was because that's what it sure as hell looked like to me Nicky!"

"I wanted you to come back here with me so I could convince you that we belong together, not you and Joe...I knew you wouldn't come with me any other way."

"I wouldn't have come with you _any_ way! I told you that even though there's a part of me that still loves you I'm not in love with you, I don't want to be with you. I'm married to Joe and pregnant with his baby...I've never been happier in my life and I'll be damned if I let _you_ or anyone else try to take that away from me!" Someone knocked on the door and she looked over at the monitor, noticing that Joe wasn't there anymore. "I've gotta go, I suggest you don't call me for a while and let me cool off."

"All right...I love you Aness." Nick whispered.

"You too Nicky." Nessa replied and hung up the phone. She walked over to the door and took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves. "Who is it?"

"It's me babe." Joe stated and she opened the door quickly. "Who were you talking to?" He asked, stepping into the locker room and looking around.

"You heard that?"

"Yeah, couldn't help but hear it once I reached the door...it was Nick wasn't it?" Joe questioned and she nodded. "What the fuck did he want?"

"To explain himself."

"And what was his explanation?" Joe growled and Nessa winced which he noticed immediately. "Sorry Ness, I'm just pissed that he had the nerve to call you."

"It's okay. I am too...he said that he wanted me to go back with him so that he could convince me that we belonged together and not me and you. That he knew that was the only way I'd go with him and there was no other way."

"That son of a bitch!" Joe exclaimed and Nessa sighed.

"Baby calm down, there's no use getting all worked up over something that you can't do anything about...it's over and done with now. He knows how I feel and I think he may accept it, Nicky was just hurting because of me being pregnant by you and the thoughts of Serenity flooding back to both of us again."

"How can you make excuses for what he did?"

"I'm not making excuses for what he did Joe. All I'm trying to do is explain to you what I know he was going through, god forbid but if you were to ever lose a child you would understand." She said, tears threatening to fall from her eyes and he took her in his arms.

"You're right babe, I'm sorry. I was just so worried about you and the baby when you called me that day...I had no idea what was going on and didn't know whether you were hurt or not."

"I know and I'm sorry for worrying you but I'm okay now and it's all over."

"It wasn't your fault. Larry stopped me in the hall and said that he wants to talk to you so we need to go see what he wants." Joe told her.

"Okay." He took her hand and they walked out of his locker room to Larry's office and Joe knocked on the door.

"Come in!" Joe opened the door and they walked in. "Ahh Joe, Vanessa...so glad you could join me. There's something that I would like to speak to you about."

"What is it?" Nessa asked.

"Joe informed of your marriage and pregnancy, first of all I just want to say congratulations. Secondly...I know that you don't like the idea of this but it's the only way I can think of to explain your absence without doing something in the ring so would you consider doing an interview and explaining why you won't be around?"

"I'll do it, I have a question though."

"What is it?" Larry asked her.

"Is it going to be out in the ring?"

"That's what I was planning on, why?"

"Then I want full security around me and Joe. With Steiner lurking out there I don't want to take any chances of something happening to me or our baby." Nessa said, taking Joe's hand in hers and he smiled.

"I understand that, I'll inform Tenay of it and you'll be let know when it's time." She nodded and followed Joe out of Larry's office.

"You were awfully quick to agree to that." Joe stated when they got back to his locker room.

"Things are different this time...to be honest with you, I was never this much in love with Monty and this time I want to do things right and if that means telling everyone about us then that's what I'll do."

"Listen to this Don! I just received word that at the end of the show we're going to have an important announcement from Alannah and Samoa Joe!" Mike Tenay's voice played through the monitor and Nessa smiled.

"I wonder what it could be Mike?" Don asked.

"That you're a jackass." Nessa replied to the monitor and Joe laughed. "Sorry, I'm not too fond of him." She grumbled. They sat watching the rest of the show until the knock came on the door letting them know it was almost time for the interview. "Well, here we go." Nessa and Joe walked to the entrance tunnel where they were met by at least a dozen of security guards and stood there waiting for his music to start up.

Once it did he took her hand and they were led out of the tunnel by security. They stopped at the top of the ramp long enough to do their usual routine then made their way to the ring where Joe and a security guard held the ropes open for Nessa. The guards surrounded the ring, making sure no one was able to get through then Joe and Nessa turned their attention to Mike Tenay.

"Alannah as I stated earlier, I was told that you and Samoa Joe have a very important announcement to share with everyone...care to let us know what that is?" He asked, holding the microphone out to her and she smiled.

"I'd love to Mike, may I?" She questioned, pointing to the microphone and he nodded. Nessa took the mic and turned to look at the crowd. "Now I know most of you are probably wondering what this is all about so I'm going to get right to it. You know me as Alannah, Samoa Joe's valet but my real name is Vanessa and I am in reality Joe's wife. We just got married last week here in Florida where we both call home among family and friends. Also I just found out that I am six weeks pregnant with Joe's child so until after the baby is born it is with much regret that I say...I am no longer going to be at ringside with him though I will be watching from backstage. I want to thank you all for the support that you have shown me since I arrived here in TNA and be assured that once I am able to I will be returning to join my husband at ringside." The crowd was going crazy as she turned to Joe and gave him a quick kiss. "Again I just want to thank you all and I hope to see you soon." She handed the microphone back to Mike, gave him a kiss on the cheek then she and Joe went to the back where Chris, Allen and Alex were waiting on them.

"Why didn't you tell us you were going to do that?" Allen asked her.

"It was a last minute thing that Larry just asked me about tonight." Nessa stated and he nodded. "I'm hungry...anybody want to go get some ice cream?" She questioned and Joe laughed. "What? I have a craving for ice cream!"

"I'll go with you V.C." Alex spoke up and Nessa smiled.

"Let's go cause some trouble then."

"We'll go with you guys to keep you in line." Chris stated, laughing.

"No fair! Ruin all our fun why don't you old man?" She teased him and he growled playfully.

"I am NOT old!"

"Older than me." Nessa shrugged, smiling.

"Not by much." Chris replied, trying his hardest not to laugh.

"By enough."

"All right _children_ let's go." Joe said, laughing.

"Watch who you're calling a child or you won't be getting any for a while." Nessa warned him, smiling evilly. Joe smacked her ass then grabbed his bag out of his locker room. "Can we go get my ice cream now?"

"Yeah, come on." He told her and the five of them left the arena to find the closest place that sold ice cream.


	37. Chapter 37

The next morning Nessa was up early with morning sickness so she decided to unpack some of the boxes that they hadn't had a chance to get to yet and came upon something that made her heart drop to her feet as she lifted it out of the box and held the paper in her hand. _I thought I threw this away._ Tears formed in her eyes as she slowly unfolded the piece of paper and her eyes traveled over the words.

"Ness?" Joe's voice entered the room and she quickly folded the paper, stuffing it in her pocket. "What was that?"

"What was what?" She asked, wiping the tears away from her eyes with the back of her hand and turning her head to look up at him.

"The paper you just stuck in your pocket."

"Oh that...it was nothing." Nessa lied, hoping he would believe her.

"Let me see it then." Joe said, holding his hand out and she sighed.

_Dammit!_ She reached in her pocket and pulled the paper out, reluctantly handing it to him. Nessa watched him as he opened it and his eyes scanned the page.

"Why do you still have this?" He questioned, not believing she would hold on to the letter he had wrote to her about the deal with James Storm.

"I honestly thought I had thrown it away but when I was going through this box I found it."

"Well, I'm throwing it away."

"Please do." Nessa replied and Joe smiled. "Look what else I found though." She reached in the box and handed him a picture frame that held a photo of them together that Chris had taken one night at the arena not long after they had gotten together.

"I wondered where that went." Joe said, looking at it.

"We need to get the family together and take one before I start showing."

"We can do it at the next taping if you want."

"I'd like that, it's been a while since Chris, Allen and I have had a photo together." She spotted a photo album in the bottom of the box and a big smile spread across her face. "Help me up, please...there's some photos I want to show you." Joe took the photo album from her and laid it on the bed then took both of her hands in his, pulling her up off the floor gently. They both sat down on the bed and she opened the cover of the photo album, giggling at the first photo.

"Is that you?" Joe asked, laughing.

"Hey, don't laugh! I'll have you know that this was mine and Allen's first Halloween together so we decided to dress up as Danny and Sandy from Grease." She pointed to the second one and smiled. "That was my first apartment after I moved out on my own, it wasn't much but at the time I loved it." Nessa turned the page and gasped a little when she saw a photo of her and Brandon together. "This was taken the day we met at the ROH show where Chris was."

"Is that Allen?" Joe questioned, laughing so hard he was near tears and Nessa started laughing along with him.

"Yeah. He, Chris, Andy and I were all staying over at Andy's place one night and Allen was the first one to fall asleep so Chris and Andy dared me to put make-up on him to punish him for being the first to go to sleep. I did it and took this picture which woke Allen up because of the flash and he ended up putting me fully clothed into a freezing cold shower."

They sat for the next hour going through all the photos with Nessa explaining to Joe what they were and what had happened when they were taken. By the time they were finished looking through the album they were both in tears from laughter.

"You hungry?" Joe asked her once they were done.

"Yeah, I lost everything I've eaten in the last week when I was paying homage to the porcelain god this morning...that's the only thing I hate about being pregnant."

"What are you in the mood for then?"

"Hmm...how about some Chinese food?" Nessa questioned.

"Sounds good, order in or go out?"

"Up to you, it doesn't matter to me baby."

"Let's just order in and we can lay in bed and watch a movie while we eat." He suggested and she smiled.

"Sounds like a plan to me. What did you want to watch?"

"I'll let you pick it out while I order the food." Joe helped her off the bed and they went downstairs so he could use the phone and she could grab a movie. "You want the usual?"

"Yeah but you better double the order this time." Nessa giggled and opened the cabinet where they stored their movies. "No, no, no...ah!" She mumbled as she thumbed through the DVD's finally settling on The Shining with Jack Nicholson. After taking it out of the cabinet she walked in the kitchen to find that Joe was still on the phone so she held up the DVD, smiling and he nodded. Joe finished ordering their food then hung up the phone and took her in his arms.

"Food will be here in about forty-five minutes, I see you picked out one of your favorites." He said, pointing to the movie.

"You don't care do you?"

"Nope." Joe responded.

"Good. Why don't you grab us something to drink while I take this upstairs and get it set up?"

"All right, I'll be up as soon as the food gets here." Nessa gave him a quick kiss then made her way upstairs. She got the DVD set up in the player, cleaned the bedroom up a little bit then decided to change into one of his old t-shirts. After changing she sat down on the bed to watch tv and wait for him. "Food's here." Joe stated, coming into the room with his arms full of bags and boxes of food. Nessa got off the bed and took some of the food from him. "I gotta run back down and get our drinks." He walked out of the room and she laid all the bags and boxes of food out on the bed, delighting in the smell of everything. "Here you go." He handed her a bottle of Pepsi and she smiled.

"Thanks baby." They both sat down on the bed and Nessa pushed 'play' as Joe sorted through the food. "Ooh eggrolls!" Nessa grabbed one up and took a big bite causing him to laugh. "Don't laugh, it's your baby that's making me eat like this."

"Babe you've always ate like that."

"Are you saying that I'm a pig Joe Seannoa?" Nessa questioned and his eyes went wide as he realized what he just said.

"No, I...I just...I just meant that you've always had a healthy appetite."

"Same thing as calling me a pig." She snapped, giving him a dirty look.

"Ness I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that...you know I didn't. I love you and I have always loved the fact that you aren't a picky eater like most women I've been with." He tried to explain and she sighed.

"No I'm sorry. I know you didn't mean it like that, it's these damn hormones."

"I understand and I'll try to remember that."

"I don't want you to feel like you have to walk around on eggshells with me either...dammit this sucks!" Nessa exclaimed, throwing her eggroll back into the container.

"Babe I don't feel that way at all and I won't ever feel that way but I know things are going to be different around here for a while and I accept that. You're pregnant with our child now and we have our baby to consider as well as our relationship. That's why..."

"That's why what Joe?"

"That's why I want you to start staying here when I go to tapings." Joe stated and she looked at him in shock.

"What? No, absolutely not!"

"Ness please..."

"Please what? Stay here while you're gone and maybe have Nicky, Brandon or Monty show up and try to do something to me while I'm home alone? Is that what you want me to do?" She asked, her voice full of anger and hurt.

"Dammit I never thought..."

"No, you sure as hell didn't Joe."

"Vanessa please!" Joe yelled and she jumped a little. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to yell but I'm trying to apologize to you here for not thinking of that."

"You want to know something Joe?" Nessa questioned, getting up off the bed and walking around to his side of the bed.

"What?"

"You're really sexy when you're pissed." Joe laughed, moved the food to the end of the bed and grabbed Nessa around the waist, pulling her gently on top of him.

"Why don't you show me how sexy I am?"

"Gladly." She whispered, leaning down to kiss him. They made love while the movie played out in the background then fell asleep side by side with smiles on both their faces.


	38. Chapter 38

At the next Impact tapings Nessa was sitting in Joe's locker room with Alex Shelley while Joe was taping more of his interview about his upcoming match with Scott Steiner at Slammiversary. "Alex?"

"Yeah V.C.?"

"Do you think I'm getting in Joe's way by being here?"

"No! Why would you ask something like that?" Alex questioned her and she sighed.

"I don't know...last week he was so concerned with me not leaving his side because of what happened with Nicky until suddenly one day out of the blue he said he wanted me to start staying at home during the tapings."

"He's probably just worried about something happening to you or the baby while you're here."

"Yeah but if you were him wouldn't you be more concerned with leaving me home by myself knowing that Monty, Brandon and Nicky could all be after me?" She asked, trying to make sense of something that had been bothering her since they had their argument.

"Yeah I guess I would be but maybe Joe just didn't think of it like that."

"That's what he said but...I don't know Alex, something just doesn't seem right to me. Maybe it's just my hormones talking again but this has been bugging me since we got into the argument about it."

"Then talk to him about it, that's the only way you're going to get the answers you're looking for." Alex stated and she laughed a little.

"Since when did you get so smart?"

"Hey! I'll have you know that I've always been smart...I just don't like to let it show." He said, giving that famous Alex Shelley smirk. There was a knock on the door and Nessa jumped a little. "Relax V.C. it's just Nash, I told him that he could find me here. You don't mind do you?"

"No, as long as he keeps his mouth shut about the X Division we're cool." Alex nodded and got up to open the door and let him in.

"You ready to go Shelley?" Kevin asked, stepping into the room.

"Not yet. I gotta wait here with my girl until her hubby gets back." Kevin turned to Nessa and smiled.

"Oh yeah, you're married to the X Division Chump."

"Fuck you Nash! Joe's got more wrestling ability in his big toe then you have in your whole body." Nessa snapped and he laughed.

"Ooh a feisty one."

"Nash leave her alone, she's my sister man." Alex spoke up and she smiled at the shocked expression on his face.

"She's your what?"

"You heard him...I've got family in the X Division and friends in the rest of TNA so I suggest you choose your words wisely around me." The door flew open and Joe stepped in, his face a mask of anger.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He growled at Kevin.

"I came to get Shelley, don't get your panties in a bunch." Kevin said, smirking down at Joe. "Awfully feisty wife you got there." He stated, pointing at Nessa who giggled and Joe looked at her in confusion.

"He said something about you that pissed me off so I told him that you have more wrestling ability in your big toe than he has in his whole body." Nessa explained and Joe couldn't help but laugh.

"And now you know one of the reasons why I married her."

Kevin looked over at Nessa and chuckled. "I hope to hell that's not the only reason."

"Oh hell no, there's plenty more." Joe replied, smiling evilly over at her and she blushed.

"Yeah well, we gotta get going. Sorry about what I said to both of you and good luck on Sunday."

"You too."

"Don't hurt Chris too bad, he's a good friend of mine." Nessa told him and Kevin laughed.

"I'll try not to, let's go Shelley."

Alex walked over to where Nessa was sitting and bent down to give her a hug. "Talk to him."

"Yeah, yeah. Get out of here skunk boy."

"Admit it V.C., you love my hair." He teased, reaching out and messing up her hair.

"Hey! Okay, okay I admit it geez...leave the hair alone would ya?" She watched Alex as he and Kevin walked out of the locker room then took a deep breath and turned to her husband. "Joe? Sit down, I need to talk to you about something."

"Okay..." He sat down on the couch beside her and Nessa turned on the couch, sitting cross-legged to face him.

"Something has been bothering me since we got into the argument about me staying home while you come here to the tapings."

"What is it?"

"You were so adamant about me not leaving your side last week after what happened with Nicky then suddenly you wanted me to stay at home by myself so I gotta know...am I getting in your way by being here with you?" Nessa asked, bracing herself for what ever answer she might get.

"Babe it was nothing like that at all! I'm just worried...scared that something may happen to you or our baby. If something would ever happen to either one of you I don't know what I would do with myself, I love you with all my heart and soul and you should know that by now."

"I do know that but it's just...I don't know. I feel as if though I'm starting to get in the way because I can't do anything but sit here while you go out and wrestle. I love being pregnant and I love being here for you but I just can't shake the feeling of being useless." She explained and he shook his head.

"You're not though and I'm sorry if I've had a part in making you feel that way but I do need you here, I always have."

"It's nice to hear that."

"I know I don't tell you much anymore how much you mean to me and that's my fault but I promise to try my best to remind you of that every chance I get, I love you Ness." Joe said, leaning over and kissing her.

"I love you too." Someone knocked on the door and Joe got up to answer it.

"Hey, come on in." He stated, stepping aside and Nessa smiled when she saw Chris Sabin.

"Chris!"

"Hey Nessa, how are you?"

"I'm doing good, still dealing with the morning sickness though." She replied.

"That's gotta suck."

"Yeah it does. So what's up?"

"Nothing really, just thought I'd stop by and check on ya." Chris responded, smiling.

"Well, thanks. I think we're getting ready to head home though aren't we?" She asked Joe and he nodded.

"Yeah I'm done for the night. Did you want to stop somewhere and get something to eat?"

"That sounds good actually...you want to go with us Chris?"

"If you guys don't care." He said, looking at Joe.

"Nah, it's cool."

"Let me go grab my bag then." Chris left the locker room and Joe turned to Nessa.

"What are you hungry for?"

"Anything's fine with me."

"We'll figure it out on the way then." He sat down beside her while they waited for Chris then when he got back the three of them left the arena in hunt for a place to eat.


	39. Chapter 39

The next day Nessa was home by herself for a few hours while Joe went and took care of a few things but he made sure not to leave before she had the whole house locked up and the alarm system set. She was lying on their bed watching Blade on DVD when her phone rang causing her to growl. "This better be good, you're interrupting one of my favorite movies." Nessa said into the phone.

"Aness?" Kelly asked, laughing.

"Oh, hey Kelly! Sorry about that I'm watching Blade."

"Want me to let you get back to it then?"

"No, it's fine. What did you need?" She questioned, pausing the movie and leaning back against the pillows.

"Well...it's not _me_ exactly."

"Who is it then?" Nessa asked, though she already had a pretty good idea who he was talking about.

"It's Nick." Kelly stated, confirming what she thought and Nessa sighed.

"What about him?"

"He's not doing too good Aness."

"What do you mean? Why not?" She wondered, worried that something happened to him.

"Nick really regrets what he did and it's killing him to not be able to talk to you."

"Kelly I'm sorry but he should've thought of that."

"I know and I understand that you are angry but...please, just talk to him." He pleaded with her and Nessa sighed.

"All right, put him on the phone." Nessa said and Kelly laughed.

"So sure he's here?"

"Please, I know the two of you well enough to know that he's probably sitting there watching you and waiting to see what happens so just put him on the phone before I change my mind."

"Here he is." Kelly replied. Nessa could hear the shuffling of the phone and held her breath as she waited to hear Nick's voice.

"Aness?"

"Yeah Nicky, I'm here."

"I am _so_ sorry! I don't know what else I can say or what I can do to prove to you how sorry I am but what ever it is...I'll do it. Just please say that you forgive me, I can't stand the thought of you hating me." Nick told her.

"Nicky I don't hate you...I could never hate you no matter what you do. It just hurts me so damn bad that you did this to me. I told you before we even left the cemetery that I didn't want to be with you, that my life is here with Joe now."

"I know and I don't think you'll ever realize how much it hurts _me_ that we can't be together but if you're happy with Joe then I will respect that and be the best possible friend to you that I can be."

"That's all I ask of both you and Kelly. Yes, I will admit at times I do miss the relationship that the three of us had but that part of my life is over now and I'm with the one man I want to be with for the rest of my life." Nessa stated, gasping when Joe stepped in the bedroom, his arms crossed over his chest. She could tell immediately by the look on his face that he knew who she was talking to and he wasn't happy about it at _all._ "Nicky I've got to go."

"Everything okay?"

"No but I can't talk to you about it right now."

"All right, call me back when you get the chance." He said.

_I may never get another chance._ "I will." Nessa hung up the phone and took a deep breath. "Baby I..." She began but Joe cut her off with a slight raise of his hand, silencing her.

"Why in the living hell were you talking to _HIM_?" Joe demanded to know.

"Kelly called me and told me that he really regretted what he did and that it was killing him not to talk to me."

"So you just called him?" He snapped, sitting down on the end of the bed.

"No, he was at Kelly's when he called me."

"Well, wasn't that fucking convenient."

Joe please!" Nessa sighed. "Look, I'm sorry if you're angry with me for talking to him but Nicky, Kelly and I have been...friends for a long time and even though what Nicky did was wrong there's no way in hell I can ever hate him or not talk to him for the rest of my life." She tried to explain to him.

"I understand that but did you have to do it behind my back?"

"How was it behind your back when you weren't even here and I had no idea Kelly was even going to call me?"

"You hung up awfully fast." Joe stated.

"Because I could see that you were pissed and I knew we needed to talk about this! Sure, Nicky and Kelly are my friends but you're my husband...the Father of my child and you're more important to me than either one of them."

"Why did you hesitate when you called the three of you 'friends'?" He asked and she cringed.

_He just had to have caught on to that._ "Because that's not really the way to describe what they were to me at one time." Nessa replied.

"What were they?"

"At one time I was with both Nicky and Kelly...together. It was not long after I had gotten pregnant and Nicky moved in with me, my hormones were running high and I wanted sex as much as I could get it so Nicky invited Kelly to join us one night. No, before you even ask they did nothing together, their main focus was me. I liked it so much that Nicky eventually asked Kelly to move in with us and we continued our relationship until after Serenity passed away."

Joe sat staring at his wife in disbelief, he never knew that side of her even existed. Sure, Nick had told him some things but he had conveniently left that part out. "You slept with both of them at the _same_ time?" Joe questioned, still not able to believe it.

"Yes. There's a whole other side to me that I keep hidden from most people because I know they wouldn't understand it. Nicky, I believe, told you most of it but I'm guessing by the look on your face that he didn't tell you about this. I'm sorry if you see me differently now...I hope and pray with all that I am that this doesn't cost me our marriage but I will _not_ apologize to you or anyone else for who I am."

"I do see you differently but it's not in a bad way. I never knew there was even this side to you and I will admit that it does turn me on a little but just don't expect me to bring home anybody." He smirked and she laughed.

"I don't want you to anyway, you're all the man that I'll ever need. With anyone else that I have ever been with I never felt completely satisfied until I met you. You showed me that I can get as much pleasure from one man as I can from two."

"Is there anything else I should know about you babe?"

"Did Nicky tell you about my favorite band?" She asked and he nodded.

"Yeah, I even listened to one of their CD's. They're not bad, just not my style but that doesn't mean you can't play them when I'm around."

"You know pretty much everything then."

"Good. How about I give you some more of that pleasure?" Joe leaned over and whispered seductively in her ear causing her to moan softly.

"I never thought you'd ask." Nessa replied, pulling him gently down on top of her.


	40. Chapter 40

It was the eve of Slammiversary and Nessa sat in Joe's locker room with Kevin Nash and Alex Shelley as her bodyguards because of Brandon and Monty being there for matches while Joe was doing an interview with Jeremy Borash. "I hate this shit." She mumbled and Kevin turned to look at her.

"What was that Nessa?"

"I said I hate this shit! I hate being holed up in this locker room because of those two assholes, I want to get out of here and go take a walk."

"Well, when your hubby gets back I'll talk to him and see if the four of us can go to catering." Kevin stated, smiling over at her.

"You'd do that?"

"Yeah. You need to get out of here before you go insane."

"At least she won't have far to go." Alex spoke up, laughing when Nessa stuck her tongue out at him. "Thanks for the offer but I don't think Joe would like it too much if I took you up on it."

"It wasn't an offer Shelley, if I was offering you wouldn't be the one in this room I'd be offering to." Nessa said, giggling at the shocked expression on his face.

"You mean Nash?"

"No, him." She replied, pointing to the door and he turned to see Joe standing in the doorway with a smile on his face.

"That was low V.C."

"Hey, what can I say? I learned from the best."

"Joe your wife's going stir crazy...think the four of us can head to catering for a while?" Kevin asked him.

"I don't have a problem with it, we just need to be careful."

"We will." Nessa told him and he nodded. The four of them left the locker room and walked to catering, immediately spotting Chris and Allen sitting at a table together.

"You go sit with them babe, I'll get your food." Joe instructed her after kissing her quickly and Nessa went over to sit with Chris and Allen.

"Hey Nessa, how's it going?" Chris questioned.

"Better now that I'm not holed up in that damn locker room."

"It's good that you stay out of view as much as possible though because of Brown and Silvestry being here tonight." Allen said.

"I know but you guys know how I hate having to stay in one place for a long time like that."

"Yeah we do but Joe's doing it for your safety and for the baby's as well." Chris stated just as Joe, Alex and Kevin walked over to the table and sat down. The six of them ate and made small talk until a voice spoke up and made all five men quickly stand up and surround Nessa.

"Well, well if it isn't my slut of an ex-wife. Tell me Nessa, how many of these guys are you fucking behind Joe's back?"

"None of them Monty. Joe's more than enough man to satisfy me which is a hell of a lot more than I could say for you." Nessa responded, smiling when she heard Alex chuckle. Monty mumbled something none of them could understand then turned and walked away. "He gone?" She asked as the guys started to sit back down.

"Yeah, I think you kind of pissed him off there." Kevin laughed.

"Good, he needed to hear the truth anyway."

"And you wondered why I call her V.C." Alex said to Nash, chuckling.

"What the hell is that anyway?" Joe questioned causing Nessa and Alex to laugh.

"Vindictive Chick. It's what I called her the night we set Silvestry up and it just stuck."

"Speaking of that other asshole, you're in that match tonight aren't you?" Nessa asked him and he nodded. "I was afraid of that...promise me you'll be careful Alex? You helped us set him up and you're part of the family now which means he may be gunning for you tonight."

"I'll be careful don't worry. If he starts anything I'll be sure to finish it." After they finished eating they walked with Nessa and Joe back to his locker room then went their separate ways to get ready for the pay-per-view.

"I'm nervous Joe." Nessa whispered once they got inside his locker room.

"How come babe?"

"What if you get hurt out there tonight? I'll have to sit back here and watch, knowing I can't go out there and be by your side."

"Ness I'll be fine, you gotta trust me." He said, pulling her into his arms.

"I do...I'm just scared."

"Don't be. It's not good for the baby or for you...if anything should happen which I doubt it will but if it does you can meet me as soon as I get backstage." Joe stated and she sighed, knowing there was no use in arguing with him.

They sit down and watch the pay-per-view together as much as they can, both getting upset when Brandon won the X Division match to become the number one contender for Joe's title. "Fuck! That sucks, I wanted to see Alex win it."

"Wanna see him beat me for my title?" Joe teased her and she slapped his arm.

"No, I just think he deserves a shot at it." The next match was between Kevin and Chris Sabin which he would've probably won had Alex not interfered numerous times. "Of course Kevin couldn't win the match on his own." Nessa giggled. Joe got up off the couch and changed his clothes before the next match started. The match after that was Chris and Allen going after Storm and Harris' tag titles with Chris and Allen winning. "Oh my god! They won!" She exclaimed, truly happy for her two best friends. Jim Cornette was introduced as the new face of TNA and made a long speech, about halfway through there was a knock on the door and Joe got up to answer it.

"Your match is up next man, you want us to stay with her?" Nessa heard Kevin ask.

"Yeah I'd appreciate that and make sure you keep her back here no matter what happens out there."

"Not a problem." Kevin said, walking into the room along with Alex.

"Babe I've got to go now. Promise me you'll stay back here with Kevin and Alex...please?"

"I don't like it Joe but I promise."

"Good, just remember that I love you." He stated, leaning down to kiss her passionately.

"I love you too." Nessa watched him walked out of the room and felt as though her heart was being tore from her chest.

"Nessa?" Alex whispered and she turned to him suddenly realizing tears were falling from her eyes. "Oh sis, he'll be okay don't cry." He walked over to her, sat down on the couch and pulled her into a hug. "He's a tough guy you know that yourself. He handled Sabu so he can handle Steiner with no problem."

"I hope so Alex, I really do." She replied just as his music started up and he made his way to the ring. The first couple of minutes in the match were all Steiner and Nessa was getting a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach until Joe stood up from being Hip Tossed by Steiner and spit in his face making her laugh. "Well hell, that's the first time I've ever seen him do something like that." The match continued to go back and forth until they went outside the ring and Steiner hits Joe in the face with a steel chair. "Oh god!" Nessa jumped up and started for the door but Kevin blocked her. "Move Kev, please!"

"No Nessa. You need to stay here." He said and she growled. The announcer saying the referee was giving them both to a count of ten to get back in the ring brought her attention back to the monitor and she watched in horror as Joe laid outside the ring, the referee getting all the way up to nine before he finally got up and raced back in the ring.

"Oh thank god!" Joe finally got the Choke Sleeper on Steiner but he managed to get out of it. "Dammit." Steiner then low blowed Joe and Nessa groaned. "Well, there just went my plans for tonight...thanks a lot asshole." She grumbled causing Alex and Kevin to laugh. Steiner is able to get the Steiner Recliner on Joe but he gets out of it and hits him with a Powerslam, picking up the win. "Yes!" Nessa yelled and jumped up, heading for the door. "You two are walking me to the tunnel NOW!" Both men chuckle and lead her out of the locker room, barely able to keep up with her as she ran to the tunnel where Joe was just stepping in the back. He spotted her coming, dropped the belt to the floor and held his arms out to her. Nessa smiled and went into his arms, wrapping her own arms around his waist and kissing him fiercly.

"I told you I'd be fine." Joe stated once the kiss ended.

"She only tried to take off once." Kevin laughed and Joe looked down at her accusingly causing her to drop her head in shame.

"He hit you in the face with a fucking steel chair, what else was I supposed to do?"

"Stay back here like you promised me."

"Technically I did."

"Only because I blocked the door and wouldn't let you out." Kevin spoke up, still laughing.

"Shut up Kev!" Nessa grumbled.

"Nessa!" Chris Daniels called out and she turned to see him and Allen standing a few feet away, their newly won tag team titles slung over their shoulders and big smiles on both their faces.

"You two Champs come over here and give your best friend a hug." She said and they both laughed as they walked over to her, hugging her. "I'm so happy for you guys and so proud of you too."

"We want the family to come out and celebrate with us."

"We'd love to." Joe spoke up and Nessa smiled.

"Chris already talked to Andy, he's waiting for us by Joe's locker room." Allen informed them.

"Alex you going?" Nessa asked him.

"Yeah, I gotta shower first."

"So does my husband. He's not allowed in my truck unless he does."

"See how much she loves me?" Joe laughed and Nessa elbowed him in the stomach. The six of them walked to Joe's locker room where they found Andy leaning against the wall, waiting. "All right Alex, meet us back here in about fifteen minutes and we'll head out."

"You got it!" Alex walked off with Kevin while the rest of them went in Joe's locker room.

Fifteen minutes later Alex, Andy, Chris, Allen, Joe and Nessa were all walking out of the arena and heading to find some place to celebrate Chris and Allen winning the tag titles.


	41. Chapter 41

The next day Nessa was sitting in Joe's locker room with her arms crossed over her chest and an angry expression on her face. "I don't see why you just won't tell me what the fuck is going on Joe."

"Because I know if I do, you'll just get all pissed off and try to come out to the ring and stop it."

"And you think I'm not pissed now?" She snapped, glaring at him and Joe sighed, sitting down beside her.

"Babe you know I love you but dammit, you're just going to have to trust me when I say it's better that you don't know just yet. How many times have I trusted you on stuff like this?" Joe asked.

"A lot...I'm sorry Joe, if you think it's best that I don't know then I won't ask you about it anymore." Nessa relented, knowing he was right. "It just seems strange because you won't even let me look at the schedule for tonight."

"I know." He looked over at the monitor and smiled. "Chris and Allen's match is starting."

"Nice changing of the subject there baby." Nessa giggled and turned to watch the match. Chris and Allen ended up winning the match against the Diamonds in the Rough despite the fact that Gail Kim interfered. "You know, I'm glad that Chris and Allen finally found someone to take care of that dumb broad." She said, talking about the big blonde woman that helped them the previous night and again that night.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later." Monty's match was up after that and Nessa scowled until she saw the guy he was going against and laughed.

"Isn't that the guy you were supposed to face before the whole feud with Steiner started?"

"Yeah I think so." The match didn't even last a minute and Monty got the pin. "Well, I see what would've happened had I faced him." Joe chuckled. "I need to get ready." Nessa watched him intently as he stood up and stripped his jeans and t-shirt off. "Stop looking at me like that Ness."

"Like what?"

"Like you're going to tackle me to the floor at any minute and screw my brains out." He said, smiling evilly at her.

"I'm sorry, I can't help it." Nessa replied, watching as he pulled his trunks on. "Dammit! You just had to go and wear my favorite ones didn't you?" She teased him. Before he could say anything there was a knock on the door and he went to open it.

"Hey, come on in." Joe stated, stepping aside.

Nessa smiled when Chris Harris and James Storm walked into the room. "Hey guys! Here to babysit?"

"Somebody has to watch ya darlin'." James said, laughing when she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Joe I already told you that I wasn't going to do anything."

"You told me that last night too and you tried to get out the door anyway didn't you?"

"Well, yeah but...he hit you in the face with a steel chair!" Nessa exclaimed, trying to defend her actions.

"And he would've done worse to you had you come out there."

"Since when did you become all logical?" She asked.

"I always have been, I just don't like to let it show. I've got to go now...stay back here and don't try to get out of the door again."

"Yeah, yeah." Nessa grumbled, falling back against the couch.

"I love you Ness." Joe whispered, leaning down to kiss her.

"I love you too Joe." She replied and watched him walk out of the locker room. "All right you two...what the fuck is going on out there tonight?" Nessa demanded to know but Chris just shook his head.

"We can't tell you."

"You both suck!" Nessa turned her attention to the monitor and her mouth fell open when she saw Brandon making his way down the ramp. "Motherfucker! I'm gonna kill him for not telling me this." She waited for Joe to come out but her anger only intensified when instead of Joe coming out, Sonjay Dutt came out. "Oh hell! A triple-threat match?"

"Nessa he'll do fine." Chris spoke up and she glared at him.

"He's in there with a guy that hates the both of us with a passion and another one who's one of the best this X Division has ever seen and the only thing you can tell me is that he'll do fine? Chris, something's going to happen out there I just know it." Nessa said, looking back at the monitor. The match seemed to be going normal at first except for a few stiff shots that she noticed Brandon used on Joe when suddenly Steiner came out of nowhere and hit Joe over the head with a steel chair. "Fuck, not again!" She yelled and watched in horror as Brandon hit the Warrior's Way on Sonjay allowing him to get the pin _and_ Joe's title. "I fucking knew this shit was going to happen! Dammit!"

"Darlin' you need to calm down." James said.

"Don't tell me what I need to do! My husband just lost his title to a man I fucking hate more than anything else and to top that off he didn't even tell me about the damn match!" Nessa pulled her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Chris Daniels' number.

"Hello?"

"Chris? Meet me out in the hall _now_, I'm leaving."

"All right." He replied.

Nessa hung up her phone and turned to Chris and James. "You can tell my husband that I went home because there's no way I'm sticking around here." There was a knock on the door and she got up to open it, revealing Chris. "Hey, let's go." She walked out of the locker room before Chris Harris or James could do anything to stop her.

"So what are you so pissed about?" Chris asked once they were in his car and on the road.

"Joe losing his title but more importantly him not telling me that he was in a damn match with Brandon." Nessa growled.

"He didn't?" Chris questioned, shocked.

"No..." Her cell phone rang and after digging it out of her purse and checking the caller id she saw it was Joe. "You can keep on calling asshole cause I'm not answering." Nessa put the phone back in her purse just as Chris pulled in the driveway of her and Joe's house.

"Do you want me to stay with you?"

"Nah, it's all right. I'll just set the alarm." She replied and he nodded.

"I'll see you later then. Call me if you need anything."

"I will." Nessa gave him a kiss on the cheek and went in the house, locking the door and setting the alarm. She opened the curtain a little and watched Chris as he pulled out of the driveway. Once Nessa knew that she was truly alone she allowed tears to flow from her eyes that she hadn't even realized she was holding back. She slid down the wall and collapsed on the floor as the tears continued to flow, not knowing if they would ever stop or where the hell they even came from. The phone in the house rang and Nessa lifted her head a little, waiting for the machine to pick it up.

"Ness? Babe it's me...pick up the phone. I know you're there." Joe's voice rang through the air.

She sighed and after a brief struggle she got up off the floor and raced to pick up the phone. "What?" Nessa whispered, sniffling.

"Why did you leave?"

"Why did I leave Joe? Why the hell do you think I left? You were in a match with someone we both hate, you lost your title to him and you didn't even have the balls to tell me...your _wife_ about the damn match! That's why I left."

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you but the baby..." He trailed off.

"No! You can't keep using our baby as an excuse to keep secrets from me Joe. I know you're worried about upsetting me and I can understand that but when you don't tell me shit like this and I have to find it out the hard way it only upsets me more then if you would've just been honest with me."

"I'm sorry babe I've got to go, the meeting's about to start. We'll talk about this some more when I get home."

"All right." She stated.

"I love you."

"I love you too." Nessa stood there staring at the phone for a minute before she finally decided to do something and dialed a familiar number.

"Hello?"

"Nicky?" She whispered.

"Aness? What's wrong?"

"I don't want to talk about it right now. I just wanted to call and tell you that I...I'm coming to visit you."

"You are?" Nick asked and Nessa could hear the shock in his voice.

"Yeah, I'm leaving now."

"Okay, call me as soon as you get in and I'll come pick you up at the airport."

"I will." They said their goodbyes and Nessa went upstairs to quickly pack her clothes. She piled her bags into the car and pulled out of the driveway, tears falling from her eyes.


	42. Chapter 42

Nessa was woke up by a flight attendant letting her know that they were getting ready to land so she sat up and looked out the window, smiling a little when she thought of the fact that she would get to see Nick soon. The plane landed and once she was inside the airport Nessa dug her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Nick's number.

"Hello?"

"I'm at the airport Nicky."

"Okay Aness, I'll be there soon." He replied. They said their goodbyes and she hung up the phone.

No sooner had she hung up with Nick and her cell phone rang, looking down at the caller id she saw it was Joe. _Oh great._ "Hello?"

"Babe? Where are you? I came home and you weren't here, I've been trying to call you for the past four hours but your phone was shut off."

"Yeah, they tend to make you shut them off once you get on the plane." Nessa said and waited for the explosion she knew was coming.

"THE PLANE? Where the hell are you?" Joe demanded to know.

"I'm in Canada...more specifically Toronto."

"Ness what the fuck are you doing there?"

"I had to get away Joe, I couldn't handle all the bullshit anymore of you keeping stuff from me and treating me like I'm made of glass." She explained.

"So, you just up and took off to fucking Canada?"

"I came here to visit Nicky for a couple of days, I'm not staying any longer than that...I just needed time away to clear my head."

"Oh yeah, that makes it all that much better. You run off to Canada to spend time with a man who's trying to break up our marriage." Joe growled. "Babe, I have a friend from TNA that lives up that way...would you consider staying with him instead."

"Oh for the love of god Joe! Nicky's not going to try anything and if he does he won't be having any kids in the near future. I love _you_ not him, I'm only here for a visit but...if you'd feel better about it then yes, I'll stay with whoever it is. Who is it anyway?" Nessa asked.

"Eric Young." Joe responded and she giggled. "What?"

"Nothing, I like him is all. He's entertaining to watch so it should be fun...is he here yet?"

"No, so unfortunately you're going to have to stay with Cvjetkovich for the night. I'll call Eric and talk to him after we get done talking though."

"Make sure you do." She said and spotted Nick walking through the airport. "I have to go, Nicky's here but I'll call you before I go to sleep."

"All right babe...I love you."

"I love you too Joe." Nessa replied and hung up the phone. "Nicky!" She called out, smiling when he turned to look at her.

"Aness, sweetie what's wrong?" He asked when he got next to her.

"Joe was in a match and lost his title."

"_That's_ why you're here?"

"He was in the match with Brandon and lost his title to Brandon." She explained. "I don't care about the fact that he lost his title, that title belongs to him yes, but I didn't get with him just because he had gold. I got pissed because he kept from me who he was going to be in the match with because he was afraid of upsetting me. He thinks that since I'm pregnant I'm made of glass and the slightest bit of bad news will break me into a million pieces." Nessa finished as they walked out of the airport and got in his car.

"So you came here?"

"I needed to get away and clear my headed before I ended up exploding and it cost me my marriage. You were the first person I thought of."

"Does he know you're here?" Nick questioned.

"He does now. He just called me right after I got off the phone with you...to say he was pissed would be the understatement of my lifetime."

"Was he more pissed about you being in Canada or being in Canada with _me_?"

"Being here with you I think, he's talking to Eric Young and I guess I'm going to be staying with him once he gets back here." Nessa said, laughing.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me!"

"Nicky can you really blame him? I mean, you did try to kidnap me and bring me here to convince me that you and me belonged together instead of me and Joe."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right." He agreed, pulling into the driveway of his house. "Well, here we are. Kelly's inside waiting on us." Nick stated and Nessa stopped mid getting out of the car.

_Great! Just what I fucking need._ "You know...maybe it _is_ a good idea that he calls Eric."

"What's the matter? Don't trust us?" Nick asked, laughing as he grabbed her bags out of the car.

"I don't trust myself." Nessa replied, following him into the house and she groaned when she saw Kelly sitting on the couch with no shirt on. "This is going to be a _long_ night."

"Aness! What in the hell could have made you fly all the way here?" Kelly questioned, hugging her.

"I'll let Nicky tell you, I'm going to go change."

"Second door on the left is yours." Nick told her and she nodded.

Nessa grabbed one of her bags and went upstairs, leaving him to explain to Kelly why she was there. Her cell phone rang just as she slipped her 'Joe's Gonna Kill You' t-shirt over her head and she grabbed it out of her purse. "Hello?"

"Babe it's me, what are you doing?"

"Just got done putting one of your shirts on. What's up?"

"I talked to Eric and gave him your number. He's going to call you here in a little bit to find out where you are so he can pick you up when he gets there." Joe said.

"Sounds good...I miss you baby."

"I miss you too Ness, I really wish you would've waited so we could have talked about this."

"I know but I was so angry and I was afraid that if I did wait around something would have been said that we would've never been able to take back." She stated and he sighed.

"I guess you're right. I just really don't like the idea of you being there with him."

"It's only going to be for one night. I should go now though incase Eric tries to call but I'll call you back later."

"Love you Ness." He whispered.

"I love you too baby." Nessa hung up the phone and started out the door, only getting a few feet when it rang again. "Hello?"

"Nessa?" A male voice asked that she didn't recognize right away.

"Yes? Is this Eric?"

"Yeah it is." He laughed. "Did Joe tell you I'd be calling?"

"Yeah, I suppose he explained to you what was going on."

"He just told me that you were in Canada visiting someone he didn't trust a whole hell of a lot and wanted to know if I minded you staying with me."

"Do you?" She asked, walking downstairs and sitting on the couch.

"Not at all. I just need to know where to pick you up at." Eric said and Nessa gave him the address. "All right, I'll call you and let you know when I'm on my way."

"Thanks Eric, Joe and I appreciate this."

"It's no problem, really." They said goodbye and Nessa hung up the phone.

"Get everything sorted out?" Nick questioned.

"Yeah. I hate the idea of having to stay with someone I don't even know but if it makes Joe feel better then...I guess I'll do it."

"Aness if you don't want to..." Kelly trailed off.

"No, don't even go there. Joe's pissed enough at me as it is for taking off so I don't need him pissed at me even more for leaving Nicky's and staying with you."

"How the hell did you know I was going to suggest that?" Kelly laughed.

"Because I know you and Nicky, inside and out, like the back of my hand."

"The outside huh?" Nicky asked and she immediately recognized the look on his face.

"Don't Nicky...just don't." Nessa warned him as she yawned.

"You're tired, go get some sleep." Kelly told her.

"I think I will. Night boys." She gave them both a hug and a quick peck on the lips then went upstairs. Nessa laid down on the bed and dialed the number to her's and Joe's house.

"Hello?" Joe murmured, sleepily.

"Oh baby, I'm sorry. I'll let you go back to sleep."

"No! I wasn't asleep, I'm just tired."

"Yeah same here. I was getting ready to go to bed and thought I'd give you a call first." Nessa said.

"This bed's so empty without you babe." He whispered and she could hear the sadness in his voice.

"Baby...oh fuck this! Call Eric and see if he would mind one more person staying with you, if not get your sexy ass on the first flight here."

"You mean it?"

"Yes! I need you here with me, god...we haven't even been apart twenty four hours and I feel like I'm going insane." She grumbled, falling back against the pillows. "I miss your arms around me, I miss looking at you and kissing you."

"You get some rest and I'll call you first thing in the morning to let you know what's going on."

"You better Joe."

"I will babe, I will. I love you." Joe said and she smiled.

"I love you too." Nessa hung up her cell phone, laid it on the stand beside the bed and fell asleep with a smile on her face.


	43. Chapter 43

_Cell phone...ringing. Must answer._ Nessa thought sleepily as her eyes fluttered open and she plucked her phone off the night stand. "Hello?"

"Ness, babe it's me."

"Alex I told you never to call me on this line! If Joe finds out he'll kill us both!"

"Ha ha very funny babe." Joe stated.

"Oh, Joe it's you...damn now you know about my secret affair with Alex." She giggled. "Okay, all joking aside what's going on?"

"Eric's going to be calling you here before long to let you know he's coming to pick you up. I'm in the airport as we speak waiting for my flight there."

"Really?" Nessa asked, excited that she was going to get to see him.

"Yeah, Eric already called the airport there and had a rental set up for me so as soon as I arrive I'll just be going straight to his house."

"Good! I can't wait to see you."

"Well, I talked to Eric and he said it was fine with him...how would you feel about staying there for a few days?" He questioned and Nessa smiled.

"Sounds good to me. We need a vacation anyway."

"True. I'm glad you said yes though because I already packed you some stuff and I'm bringing it with me."

"Why am I not surprised by that?" She laughed. "I better go if Eric's going to be calling me."

"All right, I'll see you soon. I love you Ness."

"Love you too Joe." Nessa hung up her phone and got out of bed to get dressed. Just as she had finished pulling her hair into a ponytail her cell phone rang again and she ran over to the bed to answer it, stubbing her toe along the way. "Ouch! Hello?"

"Nessa?" Eric laughed. "You okay?"

"Yeah I just stubbed my damn toe trying to get to the phone. Are you on your way?"

"Yes, I'm about five minutes away."

"All right. I'll see you soon then." Nessa said and hung up the phone. She grabbed her bags and took them downstairs to find Nick and Kelly sitting in the kitchen. "Morning boys!" She stated, kissing them both.

"Morning Aness. Are you getting ready to leave?" Kelly questioned, pulling her into his lap.

"Yeah...Eric's about five minutes away from here." She replied, sadness in her voice. "Kelly you're poking me." Nessa laughed, wiggling around on his lap.

"Keep moving like that and I'm going to do more than just poke you." He growled causing her to stop moving immediately and Nick laughed. "What the hell you laughing at? You do the same thing when she sits in your lap."

"Yeah, well, she's not in my lap now is she?"

"That can easily be fixed Nicky." She said, standing up and walking towards him but not before laying her jacket in Kelly's lap to help him hide the fact that he was turned on. Nessa sat down on Nick's lap and wiggled around a bit until he groaned. "See? I told you."

"Damn tease." He hissed.

"So I've been told." There was a knock on the front door and she got up to answer it. "I'll get it since I'm the only one in any condition to be seen by anyone." Nessa giggled, walking into the living room. She opened the door and smiled when she saw Eric standing there.

"Hi Nessa, you ready?"

"Yeah, let me just go get my things real quick." She walked back into the kitchen and found both men staring in her direction.

"That him?" Kelly asked.

"Yeah." Nessa grabbed her bags off the floor and her jacket off of Kelly's lap. "I guess I'll see you guys later...I love you both." She whispered, hugging and kissing them both.

"We love you too." They both responded. Nessa gave them both one last look before walking into the living room again.

"Here, I'll get those for you." Eric said, taking her bags.

"Thanks Eric." She followed him out to his car and got inside while he put her bags in the trunk. Nessa sat with her head against the window, a sad look on her face as she watched Nick's house and smiled a little when she saw Kelly and Nick looking out the window.

"You ready to go?" Eric asked, getting in the car.

"Yeah." Nessa replied, never taking her eyes off Nick and Kelly as Eric pulled out of the driveway.

"He a good friend of yours?" He questioned and she realized that Eric only thought Nick was there.

"One of my best, not to mention my ex which is one reason Joe doesn't trust him all that much."

"I can understand that. Joe said you like to watch me in the ring." Eric stated and Nessa giggled a little.

"Yes I do, you're very entertaining. Not to mention that whole angle of you acting scared of everything makes you utterly adorable." She said, smiling a little when she saw him blush. "Aww I'm sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you."

"It's okay." They rode the rest of the way to his house in silence until he pulled in the driveway. "Well, here we are. Here's my key. You go on in and make yourself at home while I get your things."

"You sure?" Nessa asked, taking the key from him.

"Yeah, it's no problem." He replied and she nodded.

Nessa walked into the house, admiring it immediately but suddenly stopped when she saw a familiar figure standing in the doorway. "You...but...how?" She stammered, unable to believe what she was seeing and the person laughed.

"Well, I kind of lied when I was on the phone with you. There was a 5 a.m. flight out and I took it, got here not too long ago and thought I would surprise you...surprised?" Joe asked, smiling.

"Yes! Oh my god, I can't believe you're here!" Nessa exclaimed, running over to him and hugging him. "I missed you _so_ much...I'm sorry I left Joe." She whispered, kissing him passionately.

"It's over and done with now and like you said, it was for the best at the time."

"Enjoy your surprise?" Eric questioned, walking into the house and setting her bags on the floor.

"You knew about this and you didn't tell me? Here I thought you liked me." Nessa teased him, giving him a quick hug. "Thank you Eric...for everything."

"It's no problem, really." He stated, hugging her back.

"Hey! I'm the husband here, I should be getting the love...not the single guy." Joe spoke up causing Eric and Nessa to laugh.

"How do you like that Eric? We're making my hubby jealous."

"I am _not_ jealous." Joe growled playfully.

"Could've fooled me." Eric chuckled. "Go give the big Samoan some love so he doesn't have to be jealous of the little Canadian." He laughed and Nessa giggled.

"Well, if I _have_ to." Nessa said, walking back over to Joe and wrapping her arms around his neck, leaning up to kiss him gently. "Does that make my big Samoan man happy?"

"It'll do...for now." He replied and she smacked his chest. "What?" Joe laughed.

"It'll do? Well then, I think I'll go back over to Eric...at least _he_ appreciated me." Nessa joked, turning and getting ready to walk back over to Eric who was almost rolling on the floor in laughter. She squealed in surprise when Joe reached out, grabbing both of her hips and pulled her back to him.

"I don't think so Mrs. Seannoa."

For the rest of the day the three of them just sat around talking so Nessa and Eric could get to know each other better then they decided to turn in for the night because she was getting tired.


	44. Chapter 44

Nessa sat in Joe's locker room with the door locked because no one could be in there with her since they were all out on the entrance ramps and the arena floor for the company meeting that Jim Cornette had set up. _Eric better not get fired._ She thought, watching the monitor. In the short period of time that she and Joe had spent with Eric at his place Nessa became good friends with him.

Jim Cornette announced that LAX _would_ be wrestling again or they'd stop being paid which Nessa thought was hilarious then she watched in shocked as he disbanded Team Canada. He gave AMW a rematch for the tag titles but made it a six-person tag match with them and Gail Kim against Chris, Allen and the woman that they brought in to neutralize Gail.

Then he fired Earl Hebner and put Larry in a hair vs. hair match against Raven. He gave Jarrett the title on the condition that he would face the winner of a fatal four-way match between Christian Cage, Sting, Steiner and Joe.

The minute that Nessa heard him say Joe's name she spit the water across the room she had been taking a drink of and she screamed. "Oh my god!" Nessa watched as they got an extreme close-up of Joe and she couldn't help but giggle when his lip curled up. _He looks like Elvis when he does that._

Jarrett made a challenge to Christian Cage that he and Steiner didn't want to wait for next week for the tag match against him and Sting so Christian made his way to the ring while Sting made his way in from the other side and the brawl started. Nessa smiled when she saw Christian chase Steiner outside the ring and backed him up the ramp to where Joe was standing waiting for him.

The minute that Steiner got close enough Joe put him in the Kokina Clutch and started choking him out as the cameras caught another close-up and Joe's eyes rolled in the back of his head. "Dammit!" She hissed, her body immediately reacting to the gesture. It was something that she had always found erotic ever since she had seen The Undertaker do it on the WWE. There was a knock on the locker room door a few minutes later and Nessa got up to answer it. "Joe, that you?"

"Yeah babe, it's me." Nessa unlocked the door and flung it open, her arms wrapping around his neck immediately as she tugged him in the room, kicking the door closed. "Ness? What is.." Joe's question was cut off when she crushed her lips against his and kissed him passionately. "Babe what has gotten into you?" Joe asked once she ended the kiss.

"Your eyes." She whispered.

"What? What about them?"

"You rolled them in the back of your head." Nessa said and he laughed.

"That's what this is all about?"

"Yes. God, The Undertaker drove me insane when he done that." She sighed, laying her head against his chest.

"Babe, look at me." When Nessa looked up at him he rolled his eyes back again, smiling a little when he heard her moan softly.

"Dammit Joe." There was another knock on the door and she sighed again. "People have such shitty timing." He chuckled and opened the door.

"Hey, come on in." Joe stepped back and Nessa smiled when Chris and Allen walked into the room.

"Hey guys! What's up?"

"We were wondering if you guys felt up to going out tonight for some fun." Allen said.

"Sounds good to me, what do you think Joe?"

"Fine with me. Who's all going?"

"Just the four of us right now but is there someone else you want to go?" Chris questioned.

"Only one other person." Nessa stated, smiling at Joe who nodded.

"Who?"

"Eric Young."

"What? Why him?" Allen asked.

"Because. Joe and I spent a few days with him at his house and I became good friends with him."

"You guys went to Canada?"

"It's a _long_ story." Joe spoke up and Nessa dropped her head in shame. "One that's between us as husband and wife."

"Ah, I understand." Chris said. "All right. You guys go talk to him then we'll meet up back here."

"I'll just call him." Nessa replied and pulled her cell phone out of her pocket, dialing Eric's number.

"Hello?"

"Eric? It's Nessa."

"Oh, hey Nessa! How are you?" Eric asked.

"I'm good. What about you?"

"Better now that I know I'm not getting fired."

"I knew you wouldn't. Anyway, the reason I'm calling is because Joe, Chris Daniels, Allen Jones and I are all going out and I was wondering if you wanted to go with us?" She questioned.

"Sure! I mean...that is if you guys don't mind."

"Of course not."

"Great. Just let me finished getting changed then I'll meet you guys at Joe's locker room." Eric said.

"Take your time, Joe has to get changed too."

"All right. See you soon then." Nessa and Eric said their goodbyes then she hung up the phone.

"He'll be here as soon as he's done changing." Joe nodded then grabbed his bag before walking into the bathroom to change. "You guys aren't upset about us inviting Eric are you?" Nessa asked Chris and Allen.

"No, not at all. As long as you guys trust him then we will too." Chris stated.

A half hour later the five of them were leaving the arena in search of a place to hang out for the night.


	45. Chapter 45

**A/N: Okay...I'm not exactly _sure_ where this chapter came from in my truly messed up mind but it was a blast to write. I don't think I've had this much fun writing a chapter for this story in a while. I guess it must have something to do with the fact that I FINALLY got my two Best Of Samoa Joe DVD's in the mail from when he was in ROH (Ring Of Honor). I've been watching them for the past couple of days and have been on a Joe high so this chapter seemingly wrote itself but I love it. Please review and let me know what you think! Enjoy!**

Joe woke up the next morning to an empty bed and sighed. _Well, there went my morning plans. Where the hell is she?_ He got up off the bed, not even bothering to get dressed and went downstairs. The minute he hit the middle of the stairs he heard voices that were oddly familiar. _Now what the hell is that?_ Joe walked the rest of the way downstairs, laughing immediately at the sight before his eyes. There sat Nessa curled up on the couch with a pint of ice cream in his t-shirt watching one of his old Ring Of Honor DVD's. "Babe?"

Nessa jumped a little and turned around to look at him, a big smile spreading across his face when she saw him standing there naked. "Well, good morning to you too. I didn't wake you did I?"

"No. I woke up and found the bed empty so I thought maybe I'd find you down here...what are you doing watching that?" He asked, pointing to the tv.

"I woke up hungry so I came down to get something to eat and watch some tv. Couldn't find nothing on so I put this in, you're lucky no one was here you know that?" Nessa said, giggling.

"I never thought of it actually. Got room for one more on that couch?" Joe questioned, smiling evilly.

"Yeah, come on over here and sit down with me big boy." She teased causing him to laugh. Nessa sat forward long enough for him to move in behind her then she sat back against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist. "You never change baby." Nessa stated, watching the tv again.

"I'm a bit lighter there, by about fifteen pounds."

"Well, you still look good to me...hell you always have." She said causing him to smile.

"You do realize that your being down here when I woke up ruined my morning plans, right?" Nessa was about to ask him what he meant but when she turned around and saw the look on his face there was no need for her to ask.

"Oops my bad. Well, we could always..." Nessa's suggestion was cut off by the doorbell ringing. "Shitty timing, I'm telling ya." She growled and stood up. "I suppose you had better go get dressed and we'll make them evening plans instead."

"Just get rid of whoever it is." Joe stated, standing up behind her and kissing her neck. "I wanna take you back upstairs." He whispered in her ear causing her to moan softly.

"Give me a minute to get rid of them, you go on upstairs." He chuckled then made his way back up the stairs.

Nessa sighed in pleasure as she watched him then turned her attention to the front door and opened it, smiling when she saw Alex standing there. "Hey Alex! What's up?"

"Not much V.C. I just thought I'd stop by and check on you and Joe."

"Well, I'm doing fine but Joe's not feeling too well. He's upstairs in bed as we speak." _God I hope he buys this._

"What's wrong with him?" Alex asked in concern.

"I'm not sure. He just woke up with a little bit of a cold, I should get upstairs and check on him actually."

"That sucks. I'll get going then, just tell him that I hope he feels better."

"I will Alex, thanks." Nessa gave him a quick hug and watched as he turned and walked away.

She shut the door and immediately broke out into a fit of the giggles. After getting a hold on her laughter Nessa walked up the stairs to find Joe stretched out on the bed.

"Who was it?" Joe questioned as Nessa walked over and straddled his waist.

"Alex. I hate to inform you of this Joe but...you're up here in bed with a cold." She said, another fit of the giggles overtaking her.

"He _bought_ that?" He asked, laughing.

"If he didn't he didn't let on like it. It was the only thing I could come up with right away so don't be surprised if he asks you how you're feeling at the next taping."

"Well, since I'm sick...are you going to play Nurse?" Joe smiled evilly up at her, laughing when she smacked his chest.

"Why yes Mr. Seannoa I think I will which means that it's time for your medicine."

"Oh yeah? And what medicine would that be Nurse Seannoa?"

"A _very_ healthy dose of sex." Nessa stated, leaning down to kiss him on the lips then she moved to his neck and kissed a trail down his chest.

"Now I think this is one medicine that I won't mind taking." Joe moaned out as she continued to place kisses on his chest and neck. "How often do I take this medicine Nurse?"

"Once or twice every four to six hours as needed. It can be taken more often than that but you have to be sure that you finish the full dose."

"I believe that can be arranged. Who will be giving me this medicine?"

"That would be me...if you don't mind that is." She said, smiling down at him.

"No, I don't think I mind that at all. What do you say we get started with the first dose then?"

"I say it sounds like a wonderful idea." Nessa giggled, leaning down to kiss him again. "You have to swear that you won't say anything about this though...it's against the law for us Nurses to administer this kind of medication to our patients. Besides that, I don't think my husband would like it very much."

"Well damn, you have a husband?" He asked, smirking.

"Oh yeah. A gorgeous one at that, knows exactly what to do to please me too but he can be a jealous one at times. He's a professional wrestler so if he ever found out about us I shudder to think about the things he might do to you."

"I guess we'll just have to be careful then huh?"

"Yes we will. I think that's enough talking now though, we really need to get you some medicine." Nessa stated.

"Then by all means, give me the first dose." Joe said, pulling her down into another kiss as they began to make love then fell asleep in each other's arms.


	46. Chapter 46

It was the night of Impact tapings and Nessa laid on the couch in Joe's locker room, her feet resting on his lap as he massaged them causing her to moan softly. "Baby that feels _so_ good." She whispered and he stopped. Nessa looked up at him in confusion as he just sat staring at her. "Why did you stop?"

"Don't do _that_ again." Joe ground out and Nessa giggled.

"Sorry. So, what are you doing tonight?"

"I have an interview and I go out after Steve's match to attack Steiner."

"Sounds good." She replied, her eyes closing as she enjoyed him massaging her feet. Someone knocked on the door and Nessa groaned. "Don't answer it, please."

Joe laughed and squeezed her foot. "I've got to babe." She growled and moved her feet long enough to let him stand up and watched as he opened the door. "What are _you_ doing here?" He snapped causing Nessa to sit up immediately.

"I'm here trying to get them to bring me back in. Is Aness here?" Nessa recognized the voice of Nick right away.

"She is but..."

"Joe, please." Nessa spoke up and he turned around to look at her.

"Fine, come in. Ness I'm going to go make sure everything's set up for my interview." Joe said, walking back over to her and giving her a kiss. "I love you."

"Love you too." She watched him walk out of the room and turned her attention to Nick. "What are you _really_ doing here?"

"Aness what I told Joe is the truth. I am trying to get my job back here."

_Oh, that's just wonderful!_ "Why?"

"Because I miss it, I miss being here to wrestle and...I miss being close to you." Nick admitted.

"Dammit Nicky! Do you know the hell this could do to my marriage?"

"Only if you let it."

"Which I won't! I love you it's true but Joe means the world to me, he always has and he always will." Nessa stated. "How many times do I have to tell you this shit?"

"I only want to be your friend Aness and be here for you when you need someone."

"Oh Nicky, please. Don't try to give me that bullshit when you know that I know better." She sighed, feeling her temper rise. "Get it through your thick skull that I don't want you! I want Joe, I married Joe not you and that's the way it's always going to..." Her sentence was cut off when a sharp pain shot through her stomach causing her to wince and double over in pain.

"Aness what is it?"

"I...I don't know. I think something's wrong with the baby! Go get Joe, please!" The pain was increasing as tears rolled down her face. She heard Nick race out of the room yelling for Joe.

Not even a minute later Joe came bounding in the room with Nick and a few others following behind him. "Babe what is it?" He asked, kneeling beside her.

"Something's wrong Joe...so wrong." Nessa whispered.

"Come on, let's get you to the hospital."

"No! You can't, you've got stuff to do tonight."

"I don't care about..." Joe trailed off, grabbing her as the pain hit her again.

"Joe? Allen and I will take her." Chris spoke up and he sighed.

"All right but I'll be there as soon as I get done here. I love you Ness."

"I love you too." She replied just as the EMT's rolled a stretcher into the room. They got her on the stretcher and wheeled her out to the ambulance as Joe, Chris, Allen, Nick and Alex followed closely. "Baby don't..." Another pain hit her and Nessa groaned, biting her lower lip to keep from screaming. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." She was loaded into the ambulance and Chris and Allen got in with her. Nessa kept her eyes locked on Joe as the EMT's shut the doors.

"Nessa?" Chris whispered and she looked over at him, recognizing the look on his face right away.

"I think so Chris...oh god I think so!" Nessa cried as both men took each of her hands. They arrived at the hospital in no time and they rushed her inside as Chris and Allen ran by her side.

"Hello Mrs. Seannoa, I am Dr. Nusser. I see here that you are about a month pregnant...could you tell me what is going on?"

"I've been having sharp..." Her words were cut off as another pain shot through her abdomen and Chris picked up for her.

"She was at work with her husband and she started having sharp pains in her abdomen. Her husband was unable to come along with us because of his work, he's a professional wrestler but we've been her best friends for years."

"Very well. I'd like to run some tests and see what's going on." Some tests was an understatement, they ran so many tests Nessa's head was spinning. The doctor finally came back in the room, a somber look on her face. "Mrs. Seannoa it's with much regret that I inform you...you had a miscarriage."

"No! Oh god, no...no. Please tell me this is some kind of joke." Nessa cried as Allen took her in his arms, holding her as she cried. "What time is it?" She whispered.

"Chris just walked out to call Joe, he'll be here as soon as he can." Allen replied, holding her tightly.

"He'll hate me Allen."

"_What_? No he won't! You know better than that."

"I lost our baby, how could he not hate me?" Nessa asked, looking up at him through her tears. "What have I done so wrong in my life that this keeps happening to me? First Serenity and now this baby."

"Sweetie you haven't done anything wrong." Chris said, walking back into the room. "Joe's on his way with Alex, Nick, Eric and Sabin." Chris and Allen both sat on the hospital bed with her, comforting her and assuring her that Joe wouldn't hate her.

Finally after what seemed to be hours to Nessa the door to the hospital room bursted open and Joe walked in. "Babe what is..." His words stopped the minute he saw the sight before him and Joe knew exactly what had happened. "Oh god, no."

"Joe I'm sorry..._so_ sorry." Nessa sobbed, clutching Chris' shirt tightly.

"Oh Ness it's not your fault." Joe whispered, walking over to her and taking her in his arms once Chris and Allen moved out of the way. "It's not your fault and it's not mine, this is just the way things happen sometimes. We can always try again if you want to...I want to."

"You don't hate me?"

"No! Ness why would I hate you for something you never had any control over?" He asked, holding her close to him and rubbing her back. "When we got married I promised to be here with you through all the good times _and_ the bad ones. I'm not going to back out of that promise now or any other time because I love you now and forever."

"I want to try again but...not any time soon." Nessa stated.

"I understand that and when you are ready we'll try again. Are you up for some company? Eric and Alex are chomping at the bit to get back here and see you."

"Yeah, go get them." She watched him get up and walk out of the room. Once Nessa was alone she allowed the tears to fall again, the pain and hurt too much for her to handle.

"Nessa?" Eric whispered, sticking his head in the door.

"Hey sweetie, come on in." Nessa said, wiping the tears away. "How are you Eric?"

"I'm good...how are you?"

"Not so good but I will be given time. Come, sit beside me would you?" He smiled and sat down on the bed beside her, chuckling when she cuddled up to his side.

"Joe's gonna kill me if he sees us like this."

"No, Joe won't." Joe said, stepping into the room with a smile on his face. "She trusts you and so do I. You make her happy."

"Who makes who happy?" Alex asked, walking into the room. His jaw dropped when he saw Eric and Nessa cuddled up together. "Eric you dog!"

"Oh Alex shove it and get over here and give me a hug." Nessa smiled a little. Over the next hour the guys filed into the room one by one until she became too tired. They left eventually leaving only her and Joe who had went and got them to bring another bed into the room and had shoved them together.

"Come here babe, let me hold you while we sleep." Nessa smiled a little again and moved over on the bed, cuddling up in Joe's arms. He kissed her lightly on the lips then he fell asleep as Nessa laid there and cried herself to sleep.


	47. Chapter 47

"Babe, come on...it's been four days now. You can't stay in bed forever, you know?" Joe sighed as he sat down on the bed beside Nessa. Ever since they had gotten home from the hospital Nessa had gotten into bed and refused to move other than to use the bathroom.

"Why can't I? When I sleep it doesn't hurt." She whispered, tears welling up in her eyes.

"I know Ness but you can't sleep your life away it's not healthy for you or our marriage." He said, pulling her into his arms. "You can't let this beat you, we have to move on with our lives no matter how hard that may be right now. This hurts me as much as it does you and I'm not going to let you go through this pain alone."

"I went through it alone before Joe...I can do it again." Nessa stated, immediately regretting her words when she heard him growl.

"Yes you did but I'm not Cvjetkovich. I'm not going to run away from this and from you because I love you too damn much to do something like that. Now, get your sexy ass out of this bed and get a shower because we have company coming over soon."

"Joe I don't feel like..."

"It's Eric and Alex." He cut her off, smiling when her eyes lit up a little.

"I'll just go take that shower now...care to join me?" Nessa asked.

"You sure you feel up to it?"

"We're just taking a shower Joe, we'll save the good stuff for later."

"All right then, let's go." They both got up off the bed and went into the bathroom to take a shower.

An hour later Nessa and Joe sat in the living room of their house on the couch across from Eric and Alex who kept staring at Nessa. She finally got tired of them staring at her and groaned. "Would one of you please just come out and either ask me or say whatever it is already?"

Alex chuckled and sighed. "I guess I'll do it...how are you doing V.C.?"

"About as good as can be expected I guess. I mean, I've been through this before but the last time I actually got to hold my daughter this time..." She trailed off, tears forming in her eyes again and Joe wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her close to him. "This time I didn't even get to see my child which hurts more than you could ever imagine. I was so excited about this baby too because I have the husband that I've always dreamed of and getting pregnant with his child was going to make our family complete." Nessa said.

"Are you guys going to try again?" Eric asked and she smiled a little at him.

"We are when the time is right. For now, I think we're just going to enjoy being newlyweds and having the time together alone that we do. I guess it's selfish of me but I kind of like having Joe all to myself." Nessa stated, cuddling up to his side.

"We want to thank you both for coming over here today. I don't think you honestly realize what that means to us...especially me." Joe told Alex and Eric only to have them both look at him questioningly. "Ness hasn't been out of bed since we got home from the hospital but the minute I mentioned you two were coming here she got right out of bed."

"Another member of the family?" Alex asked Nessa and she smiled.

"Oh yeah."

"Well then, welcome to our big perverted family Eric." Alex laughed.

"Okay...what?" Eric questioned, confused.

"Chris Daniels, Allen Jones, Andy Douglas, Nick Cvjetkovich, Kelly Wolfe, Alex, Joe and myself consider ourselves to be one big family. You're part of that now if you would like to be."

"Wow! Really?"

"Yes. We're all very close even though Alex was brought in not too long ago and as for his perverted comment...just ignore that. The only perverted one in the family is him." Nessa stated, smiling innocently at Alex when his jaw dropped.

"Oh that is such bullshit V.C." Alex laughed. "You're just as perverted as I am."

"Uh huh, prove it skunk boy."

"That's easy...I know for a fact that Joe wasn't sick the last time I was here." He informed her and Nessa's mouth fell open as Joe laughed. "I may only be twenty-three but even _I_ know that's the oldest excuse in the book."

"Oh you wanna play that huh? If he wasn't sick then how come I had to play nurse?" She questioned, giggling at the shocked expression on his face.

"Okay, Alex is right...you're as perverted as he is." Eric spoke up, laughing.

"Eric! How could you? I thought you loved me!" Nessa teased him.

"That has nothing to do with how much of a pervert you are."

"Hmph and to think I rooted for you to not get fired." Nessa said, pouting.

"Aww poor Nessa." Eric joked, getting up and tickling her sides.

"Eric, no! Stop!" She giggled as she tried to get away from him.

"Not until you say you love me." He growled playfully, still tickling her.

"Okay, okay! Eric Young...I love you _so_ much." Nessa gushed, kissing him on the cheek and he laughed.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Eric kissed her forehead and walked back over to sit down on the chair again.

"Actually...I just said that to get you to stop tickling me." She said, sticking her tongue out at him.

"Why you little..." Eric trailed off, starting to get up again.

Nessa giggled and got in Joe's lap. "Come on big boy, come get me now." Nessa stated as Joe wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Yeah right, you'll just sick your hubby on me." He laughed.

"So V.C. are you going to the tapings coming up?" Alex asked.

"Not this week since Joe's just going to be attacking Steiner but I _will_ be at the pay-per-view without a doubt."

"Ain't going to be the same without you there." Alex said, smirking.

"Aww you'll survive without me for one Monday."

"Babe are you sure you wanna go to the pay-per-view?" Joe questioned, kissing her neck softly.

"Yeah. I need to get out of the house before I go crazy and besides that I wanna see if Larry gets his head shaved or not." She replied, giggling.

"All right but if you think you can't handle it just tell me."

"I will." There was a knock on the door before Joe could say anything else and Nessa sighed. "Alex could you get that? I'm too comfortable to move."

"Sure." He got up to answer the door, gasping at who he saw. "Uhm...V.C.?"

"Yeah Alex? Who is it?"

"It's your favorite demon." A male voice spoke up and Nessa's eyes went wide as she squealed in delight and jumped off Joe's lap.

"Dave!" There standing at her front door was none other than Dave Batista. "What the hell are you doing here?" She asked, hugging him when Alex stepped aside to allow him to walk in.

"Kelly called me and told me what happened...how you holding up?"

Nessa groaned and slapped herself in the forehead. "Duh! I forgot you worked with Kelly in OVW. I'm doing about as good as can be expected I suppose...let me introduce you to my man." She took his big hand in hers and led him over to where Joe was sitting. "Joe, I'm sure you already know who this is but oh well, I'm gonna introduce you anyway. Baby this is Dave Batista, an old friend of Kelly's and one of my favorite wrestlers. Dave, this is my husband Joe Seannoa better known in TNA as Samoa Joe."

"Good to meet you man." Joe said, standing up and shaking Dave's hand.

"You too. So you're the man that stole Little Nessa's heart huh?"

"Dave stop." Nessa grumbled, blushing and he laughed.

"V.C.?" Alex spoke up and she gasped.

"Dammit! Sorry Alex. Dave that one standing over there looking like a skunk is Alex Shelley and that quiet one over there is Eric Young." Nessa stated, pointing them both out.

"What have I told you about calling me a skunk V.C.?" Alex questioned, crossing his arms over his chest and trying his best not to smile.

"Uhm...that you love it?"

"Do I have to tickle you like Eric did?" He asked, stepping closer to her and Eric laughed.

"No!" She exclaimed and hid behind Joe. "Hey...I like the view from back here." Nessa muttered, pinching Joe's ass.

"Woman knock that off." Joe growled.

"Knock what off? I didn't do anything!" She replied, innocently.

"You're just full of it today aren't you?" Joe laughed, turning around to hug her.

"It's better than the alternative isn't it?"

"Much. How about we go fix something to eat for everybody?"

"Sounds good...you're gonna need all the strength you can get for later tonight anyway." Nessa whispered, winking at him.

"Shouldn't I be the one saying that to you?"

"Not this time baby." She giggled and walked into the kitchen, the four men following behind her.


	48. Chapter 48

It was the night of Victory Road and Nessa sat in Joe's locker room with him, her body there but her mind was elsewhere. It was the first time she had been out of the house since her miscarriage and Nessa couldn't help feeling nervous even though she wasn't sure why.

"Babe?" Joe whispered, bringing her out of her thoughts and she turned to look at him. "What are you thinking about?"

"I feel...nervous for some reason Joe."

"I kind of expected that actually, this is the first time you have been out of the house after all and not only did you not go somewhere normal you came to a pay-per-view. Did you want to go back home?" He asked causing her to shake her head.

"No. I want to be here tonight, I'm just really nervous about it."

"You'll be fine Ness don't worry." Joe changed his clothes real quick then sat down beside her to watch the show as it started up.

"Oh, you have got to be fucking kidding me!" Nessa exclaimed as she watched D'Amore make Eric strip his Team Canada jacket and pants off. "Damn asshole." She muttered, getting up and rummaging through Joe's bag.

"Babe what are you doing?" He questioned, watching in amusement as she pulled a black t-shirt out of his bag.

"Walk me up to the tunnel." Joe was about to argue with her but the look on her face changed his mind and he led her out the door and up towards the tunnel. Nessa stood with Joe waiting for Eric to get to the back and the minute he did she ran up to him and handed him the t-shirt. "Here sweetie."

"Thanks Nessa." Eric took the shirt and slipped it over his head. "Damn, that was embarrassing."

"That's why I brought you the shirt. Why don't you go finished getting dressed real quick then meet up with me in Joe's locker room? You can keep me company while he has his match tonight."

"All right, sounds good. Give me a few minutes and I'll be there." Eric gave her a hug and quick kiss on the cheek before walking off.

"You've really taken to him haven't you?" Joe asked her on the way back to his locker room, his voice was laced with amusement and it made Nessa giggle.

"Yeah I have, he's such a sweetheart and I get along with him so well."

"I'm glad too...it's nice to see you smiling again." He admitted, pulling her to him for a kiss.

"He's not the only one who makes me smile baby, you do a damn good job of it too."

"Yeah I do, don't I?" Joe reached down and cupped her ass with both of his hands before lifting her up causing her legs to instinctively wrap around his waist.

"Don't start anything you can't finish Joe." Nessa whispered, kissing him.

"Who says I can't finish it?" He questioned, smirking. A knock on the door interrupted them and he growled.

"That says you can't finish it." She giggled as he put her back down.

"I'll finish it later don't you worry about that."

"Yeah well, you better." Joe laughed and opened the door to reveal a smiling Eric.

"I'm not interrupting anything am I?"

"Actually you..."

"No you're not Eric, come on in." Nessa spoke up, cutting Joe off. "Joe can wait to get him some later because his match will be coming up soon and he needs to save his energy for that."

"I have plenty of energy." Joe grumbled, flopping down on the couch.

"Stop pouting baby, it doesn't fit you." She teased him as she sat down in his lap. There was another knock on the door and Nessa groaned.

"Sit still I'll get it." Eric offered, getting up and walking to the door.

"Young is Nessa here?" Chris Daniels asked.

"In here Chris!" Nessa called out.

Chris laughed and walked into the locker room. "Hey there, how are you?"

"I'm...better."

"That's good. I just thought I'd come tell you that you're the talk of the backstage."

"I'm...what? Why?"

"Brown's going around talking shit about you and when Silvestry heard about it he started in on it too." Chris explained and Nessa sighed, burying her face in Joe's shoulder.

"I suppose I should've saw this coming. What do I do?"

"I don't think you'll have to do anything." Chris stated, a smile on his face that Nessa didn't understand.

"What do you mean?"

"You're getting help from an unlikely source that doesn't even know you."

"Who?"

"Terry Gerrin (Rhino)." He replied and Nessa's mouth fell open.

"You mean...he...why would _he_ help _me_?"

"What's Gerrin's interest in my wife?" Joe demanded to know and Chris shrugged.

"I don't know man, really. If you want know...you're gonna have to talk to him."

"Babe you're gonna have to get up, I'm going to go have a talk with our resident War Machine."

"Not without me you're not and you can't anyway because your match is coming up." As if on cue a stagehand knocked on the door to let Joe know it was time for his match.

"I guess I'll just talk to him after."

_Not if I can get to him before you._ Nessa thought, standing up so he could get up. "Baby be careful out there tonight."

"I always am." Joe gave her a quick kiss then made his way out of the locker room. As soon as the door shut she turned to look at Chris.

"Yeah, yeah...I'm going to get him." Chris muttered, walking out of the locker room.

"Who's he going to get?" Eric asked.

"Terry. I'm not waiting around for Joe to find out what his deal is."

"Nessa maybe you should..."

"Why? So him and Joe can get into it? You know as well as I do that both of them have really bad tempers and I'm not willing to put up with them fighting." Nessa kept one eye on the monitor to watch out for Joe and the other eye on the door. She didn't have to wait long when the locker room door opened and Chris walked back in with Terry following behind him.

"You wanted to see me about somethin'?" Terry questioned.

"Yeah...why are you helping me?"

"You really don't know?"

"If I knew I wouldn't be asking you Terry." Nessa replied, laughing a little.

"I got a phone call from a friend of yours that I used to work with in the WWE."

It took Nessa a minute to put it together but it finally hit her who he was talking about. "Fuck! He called you?"

"Yeah, he called before he left from staying at your place and asked me to look after you."

"That's Dave for ya." Nessa giggled, cringing slightly when she heard someone go through a table. She turned to the monitor and saw that it was Joe causing her mouth to fall open. "Shit!" Nessa jumped up and started for the door only to have Chris step in front of it.

"Don't even think about it little missy."

"Move Chris." She growled, trying to get around him but two arms wrapped around her waist to stop her.

"He would want you to stay back here Nessa, he'll be fine and as soon as the match is over we'll take you to see him." Eric stated.

"Did I ever tell you two how much I hate you?" Nessa mumbled, moving out of Eric's arms to sit on the couch.

"You love us and you know it."

"Don't press your luck Daniels." She teased, laughing. "Terry...thanks for looking out for me."

"It's no problem really. When he told me what the hell was going on I was more than willing to do it."

"How much did he tell you exactly?"

"He told me about what Brown did the day at your house when you told him about your affair with Wolfe."

"Ah, that explains it." The bell rang and she turned to see that Sting had won the match. "All right...somebody's walking me to the tunnel so I can check on my man."

"Come on, we'll all walk you there." Eric said, taking her hand and pulling her off the couch. Terry, Chris, Eric and Nessa all walked out of the locker room and made their way towards the tunnel.

Joe hobbled to the back knowing that Nessa would be there to check on him but when he saw Terry Gerrin standing there with her he let out a growl that sounded more animal than human and he stormed up to Terry, getting directly in his face. "What's your sudden interest in my wife Gerrin?"

"Joe stop, please!" Nessa exclaimed, stepping up to him and putting her hand on his chest. "I already know why he's helping me so don't start anything."

"Why?" Joe demanded to know, his eyes never leaving Terry's.

"Dave Batista called him and asked him to look out for me...now would you please back off?" Nessa whispered, looking up at him with pleading eyes.

Joe sighed and stepped back a little. "Are you _sure_ that's his only reason?"

"What's the matter Seannoa? Afraid I might steal your wife away?" Terry asked, smirking and Nessa's head whipped around to look at him in shock.

"You son of a bitch!" Joe yelled and lunged for Terry.

The two men started fighting back and forth before Nessa even knew what was happening. Chris and Eric pulled them apart as best as they could but they were still struggling. "You two stop it, please!" Nessa stepped in between them hoping to calm them down but before she knew it Joe lunged at Terry again, knocking her down in the process and the last thing she heard was Joe calling her name before everything went black.


	49. Chapter 49

"Joe?" Nessa groaned as she slowly opened her eyes to look around the room, immediately recognizing that she was back home in her own bed.

"Ness? Oh babe, thank god you're awake!" Joe stated, rushing to her side.

"How long have I been out?" She whispered, smiling a little when he pulled her in his arms.

"It's Monday Ness...you were out all night." He replied and she looked up at him in shock. "Babe I am _so_ sorry for knocking you down! You'll never know how bad I feel about it."

Nessa could see tears forming in his eyes and it broke her heart in two. "Joe don't worry about it, it was an accident and I know that. I know that you would never hurt me on purpose so please...just let it go." She didn't want to talk about it anymore and she sure as hell didn't want to think about the feelings that Terry stirred up inside of her when he asked Joe if he was afraid that he might steal her away. _I know that I'm married to Joe and I know that I'm in love with him but...could I have some hidden crush on Terry that I never knew about?_

"Babe?" Joe's voice broke her out of her thoughts causing her to jump a little and she looked up to see him smiling down at her. "Welcome back, where were you just off to?"

"No where in particular, I was just thinking."

"Want to talk about it?" He asked, kissing her forehead.

"Nah, it's nothing important."

"Well before I noticed you were off in your own little world I asked you if you were hungry. So are you?"

"Actually yeah, I am." Nessa replied, smiling at him.

"I'll go get us something to eat then." Joe gave her a quick kiss then made his way out of the bedroom.

She watched him disappear out of the room and sighed as she fell back against the pillows. _What the hell am I gonna do?_ Before she could think about it too long her cell phone rang and she growled softly. Nessa picked it up off the night stand beside the bed to check the caller id but it was a number she didn't recognize. "Hello?"

"Nessa?"

"Yes, who's this?"

"It's Terry Gerrin...I just wanted to call and see how you're doing." Terry stated and Nessa's mouth fell open.

"I uhm, I'm fine now but...how did you get my number?"

"I called Batista and got it off of him. You don't mind, do you?"

"NO...I mean no, of course not. I was just confused as to how you got my number." She admitted, twirling a strand of her hair around her finger which was something that she always used to do when she was younger and nervous but she hadn't done it for years.

"I'm really sorry that you got hurt in all of that shit yesterday." Terry whispered and she shivered involuntarily. "I never meant for you to get hurt at all."

"I'll tell you the same thing I told Joe...it was an accident and I realize that so I don't hold it against either of you. But I gotta know something Terry...why did you say that to Joe?" Nessa questioned, even though she wasn't sure she was prepared to hear whatever answer he was going to give.

"What? About him being afraid of me stealing you away?"

"Yeah."

"I really don't want to talk about it over the phone. Can you meet me in my locker room tonight sometime?"

"Uhm...yeah, sure." Nessa responded, confused. "I have to go now though so I can eat something and get ready."

"All right. I'll talk to you later then."

"Bye Terry."

"Bye Nessa."

She hung up the phone completely confused and got up off the bed to get dressed. "I've got to find out what the hell is going on with him." Nessa muttered as she got dressed.

"Going on with who?" Joe spoke up causing her to jump and she turned to see him standing in the doorway with food in hand.

_Shit! There's no way I can tell him about Terry calling me or he'll throw a fit._ "Monty...I can't let him go around talking shit about me or I'll never be able to face anyone there." She lied, taking the food from him that he offered.

"Babe don't worry about it, most everyone there knows you better than to believe the shit that he's been saying."

"Yeah I suppose so." They finished eating in silence then she watched as Joe packed his bag. "You ready baby?"

"Yeah, let's go."


	50. Chapter 50

"Baby I need to go talk to Eric about something so you go on and go to the locker room, I'll meet up with you in a little bit." Nessa stated once they were inside the arena.

"Are you sure? I can go with you if you want me to."

"Nah, that's okay."

"All right...just be careful." Joe said, kissing her.

"I will." She watched him walk off then when he was far enough away she pulled her cell phone out of her purse and dialed Terry's number.

"Hello?"

"You're at the arena I hope."

"Yeah, I'm in my locker room...why?"

"I'll be there in a minute." Nessa replied and hung up her phone before he could say anything else. She walked to Terry's locker room and took a deep breath before knocking on the door which immediately opened.

"Come on in." Terry whispered and Nessa walked cautiously inside.

"All right, I'm here...so what the hell was last night all about?"

(**_Meanwhile with Joe..._**)

Joe had just finished getting his trunks on and sat down on the couch when someone knocked on the door. He growled and got up to answer it, a look of surprise on his face when he saw Eric standing there. "Where's Ness?"

"Huh? I was just coming to ask you that."

"You haven't seen her? When we got here she said she was going to talk to you about something."

"I haven't seen her Joe." Eric replied causing Joe to sigh.

"Something is fucked up here and I think we need to find out what it is..." He trailed off, grabbing a shirt and throwing it on then he and Eric left the locker room in search of Nessa.

(**_Back with Terry and Nessa..._**)

"Well? Are you going to tell me or not?" Nessa asked, getting irritated with the fact that he was just standing there smirking at her. She was about to say something else but was cut off by Terry taking her in his arms and crushing his lips against hers in a roughly passionate kiss. At first Nessa struggled against him, trying her best to get him to break the kiss but he was too strong for her so she just relaxed in his arms and enjoyed the kiss. When he finally broke away she stood there looking at him in shock. "What the hell did you do that for?"

"Isn't it fucking obvious Nessa? I want you." Terry stated simply and her mouth fell open.

"Terry I...I like you and all but this can't happen. I'm married to Joe and I love him with all my heart so there's no way I could ever do something like this to hurt him." Terry opened his mouth to say something but was stopped short by Nessa's cell phone ringing. She growled softly and pulled it out of her purse, her heart jumping into her throat when she saw Joe's number. "Yeah baby?"

"Where are you Ness?"

"I'm with Eric like I told you I'd be...why?"

"Oh really? You know that's awfully funny babe since Eric's with me right now helping me look for you."

_Shit!_ "Joe I..."

"Ness what the fuck is going on?" Joe demanded to know and she cringed at the tone of his voice. "Where are you and why are you all of the sudden lying to me?"

"Because I knew if you knew where I am right now you'd be pissed and wanting to fight."

"Just exactly where the hell are you?"

"I'm...in Terry Gerrin's locker room." Nessa whispered.

"You're WHAT? What the hell are you doing with him?"

"Joe calm down please." She pleaded with him, sighing.

"No! This is fucking bullshit Ness and you know it! You fucking lie to me about where you're going and then I find out you're with someone who I just got into a fucking fight with last night...defending you no less."

"I didn't ask you to defend me Joe! You got into the fight with Terry all on your own even though I tried to fucking stop it. There was no reason for the damn fight in the first place!"

"He said he was going to steal you away from me!" Joe exclaimed and she could tell that his temper was reaching the boiling point.

"No he didn't Joe, he asked if you were afraid that's what he was going to do."

"Oh for the love of god! You're fucking defending _him_ now?"

"I'm not defending anyone Joe..."

"Yeah, whatever. When you get done talking to the asshole come find me cause we need to fucking talk." His phone hung up with a loud click causing Nessa to wince.

"Everything okay?" Terry asked.

"No everything's not fucking okay Terry...I may have just lost another husband." Nessa whispered, tears falling from her eyes. "I've gotta go find him and fix this. I'm sorry Terry...I really am." Without another word or glance in his direction she opened the locker room door and walked out, letting it close with a soft click behind her. Nessa walked to Joe's locker room praying that's where he was and she opened the door, slowly peering inside. "Joe?" She saw him sitting on the couch, his whole body shaking with anger and hurt which caused her heart to break in two.

"Why?"

"Because I wanted to find out why he said what he did."

"And?"

"And he..." Nessa trailed off, not sure what to say. _Do I tell him the truth or do I lie to him again?_

"He what Ness?" Joe questioned, looking at her for the first time.

"He...kissed me." She whispered and Joe shot up off the couch, heading for the door. "Joe don't, please!"

"Give me one damn good reason why I shouldn't." He growled, turning to look at her.

"Because he's not worth you getting in trouble over."

Joe sighed and moved back over to the couch. "Did he say anything else to you?"

"Just that he wants me but Joe you don't have anything to worry about, I promise you."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." _At least I think so._ "What are you doing tonight?"

"I get to go out and get into a small fight with Terry and challenge him to a match next week...oh joy." Joe replied sarcastically.

_Oh, this is just fucking great!_ "Just don't do anything out there to get yourself in trouble, please."

"I won't babe. Promise me something though?"

"What?" Nessa asked, smiling when he pulled her on to his lap.

"Promise me you won't lie to me anymore no matter what the situation is."

"I promise." Nessa responded, kissing him softly.

"Good." There was a knock on the door and he growled. "Time for me to go." Joe stood up, stripped his shirt off and put his towel around his neck.

"Remember not to do anything stupid out there."

"I know, I won't. I love you Ness."

"I love you too Joe." She watched him walk out of the room and turned her attention to the monitor where Terry was having a match against some rookie. _God, he is so gorgeous...NO! Stop doing that._ Nessa shook the thoughts from her mind, smiling when she saw Joe walk out of the tunnel. She listened to him as he accepted Terry's extreme challenge for a match on the next Impact. The two men tried to get the match started early and began fighting but security separated them. The locker room door opened a few minutes later to reveal Joe standing there, seething with anger. "Baby calm down, please."

"I'll calm down when I get my hands on that fucker next week." He growled, his body shaking with anger as he changed his clothes.

"That's it! Come on big man...I'm taking you home and calm you down in my own way." Nessa said, getting up off the couch and giving him a kiss.

"I like the sound of that." Joe took her hand and they left the locker room to head home.


	51. Chapter 51

Nessa woke up the next morning to find that she was alone in the bed so she got up then went to search the house for Joe and found him sitting in the living room looking out the big picture window. "Joe?" He was so deep in thought that he didn't hear her so Nessa stepped closer to him and laid her hand on his shoulder. "Joe?" When he finally turned to look at her what she saw broke her heart in two and she gasped.

He sat there looking up at her with tears in his eyes and the saddest look she had _ever_ seen on _any_ man. "What is it?" Joe whispered, his voice cracking a little.

"Baby what's wrong?"

"Nothing." He replied, turning away from her.

"Joe don't do that, please...just tell me what's wrong."

He turned to look at her again as she sat down beside him and took his hand in hers. "I feel like I'm losing you and I hate the feeling that I can't do a damn thing about it." Joe admitted, hanging his head.

"Baby look at me." Nessa stated, her voice stern and he raised his head to look at her. "You're **_not_ **losing me, not now...not ever. What makes you think you're losing me?" She asked then suddenly her eyes went wide as she figured out the answer before he had a chance to give it. "This is about last night isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Joe Seannoa you listen to me and you listen good! _You_ are the only man I want...not Terry, not Sabin, not Nicky, not Kelly or anyone else for that matter. I'm with you because you are the one I want to be with and not them. I married _you_ because I love you more than anything or anyone else in this world. I have never been as happy as I am when I'm with you and you'll never understand how much that means to me."

"Babe..." Joe started but stopped when she raised her hand to silence him.

"I'm not finished yet. You have been with me through hell and back...my god Joe, we've been through hell and back together but we somehow managed to tough it out and stay together. I know when we first got together things weren't what we wanted them to be but we changed all that and we grew stronger from our mistakes. But Joe please do me one favor?"

"What?"

"Don't _ever_ doubt my love for you because that's the one thing I can sit here and tell you straight from my heart that will always be with you and will always be something that I have." Nessa said, tears falling from her eyes.

"Ness I have never doubted your love for me...not even once but you don't understand how much it killed me inside to find out last night that you had lied to me and yes, before you even say anything I know I have lied to you before about some things but I have **_never_** lied to you about somewhere I was going or who I was going to be with."

"I know you haven't and I can't even begin to describe how horrible I feel about lying to you but I knew if I told you that I was going to see Terry you would've tried to stop me and maybe even done worse. I had to find out why he told you what he did because it was driving me insane and you know how I get about that shit."

"Yeah babe I do know but..." Joe trailed off, sighing as he ran his free hand through his hair. "Dammit I just wish you wouldn't have went there without me."

"Baby I know that and I don't know how many times I have to apologize to you for it or tell you how much I truly regret it but I do. You mean the world to me and I love you with all my heart and soul."

"I love you the same Ness, you know I do...I'm just afraid of losing you."

"And like I told you Joe, you're not going to lose me. What can I do to make you believe that?"

"Never lying to me again would be a good start." He replied, smiling a little.

"I promise you that I won't. Anything else?"

"Stay away from Gerrin unless I'm around too and follow me upstairs so we can get to the best part of fighting."

"Oh yeah? What's that?" Nessa asked, standing up and hugging him when he stood up.

"The make-up sex of course."

"Why am I not surprised that you said that?" She giggled, following him upstairs.

"Probably cause you know how damn horny I am." Joe said, laughing.

"Yeah, that's probably it." When they got to the top of the stairs Joe turned around and swept her up in his arms causing her to squeal in surprise as he carried her into the bedroom. "I love you Joe Seannoa."

"And I love you Vanessa Seannoa." He whispered, kissing her passionately.


	52. Chapter 52

The next Monday Nessa sat in Joe's locker room with Alex and Eric while Joe was out getting ready to head to the ring. She sat watching the monitor with a nervous feeling in the pit of her stomach as she bit her nails. "Something's going to happen tonight."

"What's that Nessa?" Eric asked, sitting beside her and taking her hand in his to try and calm her down.

"Something bad is going to happen tonight, I can feel it."

"You sure it's not just PMS?" Alex joked, trying to lighten the mood but she just shot him a dirty look. "Fuck, you're serious."

"Yeah I am and I don't like this feeling at all. Could you go get Allen and Chris please?" Nessa questioned and Alex nodded, disappearing out of the locker room.

"What do you think it is?"

"I don't know Eric but it's scaring the hell out of me." Just as she said that Alex walked back in with Chris and Allen trailing behind him.

"Here they are V.C."

"What's up Nessa?" Chris asked when he saw the look on her face.

"I got a bad feeling Chris...really bad."

"What about?" Allen spoke up.

"Something's going to happen out there tonight." She explained and turned to the monitor as Joe's music started up. "And I have a feeling it's going to happen to him." Nessa whispered, leaning her head against Eric's shoulder. Joe and Terry start fighting and trading blows until Joe hit Terry with a leaping Enzeguri that sent them both to the mat. Suddenly Monty walked out of the tunnel and sat down at ringside. "What the fuck is he doing out there?"

"Who the hell knows Nessa." Chris stated, sitting on the other side of her and watching the monitor intently. Terry got Joe into a Rear Chinlock but he broke free from it and hit Terry with a Senton to get a two count. Terry then attempted to throw Joe into the ropes but Joe reversed it and Terry knocked the ref down.

"Shit! This isn't good at all." Nessa groaned, her bad feeling growing stronger by the minute. Terry then charged at Joe again but Joe Powerslammed him to the mat but Terry bounced back and went for the Gore. Monty grabbed his leg to prevent it and pulled Terry out of the ring then Joe took a chance and hit Monty with a Suicide Dive. Terry and Joe then brawled on the ramp as Terry Suplexed him on the steel. "Fuck." She watched in confusion as Terry headed to the back but her questions were answered as to what he was doing when he came back a couple of minutes later with a table. "No, no...please no." Nessa muttered, clinging to Eric tightly.

"Shh Nessa, it'll be okay." Eric whispered, pulling her to his side. Terry set Joe up in front of the table and signaled for the Gore but Monty attacked him from behind and went running at Joe who hit him with a leaping kick that sounded like a gunshot. Monty stumbled around for a minute until Joe locked him into the Kokina Clutch and before Nessa knew what was happening Terry Gored both men through the table.

"NO!" Nessa screamed, breaking down in tears.

"Nessa honey, come on now. Joe's strong he'll get through this." Chris said, rubbing her back.

"Pl...please someone take me to the tunnel." She whispered through her tears.

"Come on sweetie, I'll take you." Allen stated and she nodded. Nessa got up and started to walk towards the door but her knees gave way and she almost collapsed on the floor but Alex caught her just in time.

"I'm going to carry you up there V.C. you're in no condition to walk." Alex lifted her up before she could say a word and carried her out of the locker room. Nessa continued sobbing as she laid her head on Alex's chest and he carried her to the tunnel.

"Alex?" Kevin Nash called out and Alex turned to him. "Shit...she saw it. Here, I'll take her." Alex nodded and Kevin took Nessa in his arms carrying her the rest of the way to the tunnel. "Nessa, sweetie look...Joe's getting up and he's coming back this way." Kevin whispered. She lifted her head off of his shoulder and through her tears she saw Joe getting up slowly and walking through the tunnel. Nessa couldn't bare to watch him wincing in pain and limping so she just laid her head back down on Kevin's shoulder.

"Why are you carrying my wife Nash?" Joe asked, pain evident in his voice and Nessa lifted her head to allow him to see why. "Oh Ness, come here babe." Kevin put her down and let her go to him. Joe enveloped her in a hug as she began to cry again. "Shh babe it's all right. I'm fine and I'm here with you now so quit that crying because you know how much I hate to see you cry."

"Joe please...I just want to go home."

"All right we will. I'll go take a shower then we can head home."

"No, just get your bag from the locker room and get me out of here, please." She murmured, burying her face in his chest.

"Babe I'm all sweaty and..."

"And I don't give a damn, I just want to go home."

"If that's what you want then come on, we'll go home." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and led her towards the locker room while Allen, Alex, Kevin and Eric followed them. "Nash thanks for carrying her here."

"You're welcome but Shelley carried her most of the way."

"Well, thanks Alex."

"No problem Joe. When she almost collapsed in the locker room I knew she was in no condition to walk on her own." Alex explained and Joe looked back at him in shock.

"She almost collapsed?"

"She was crying and shaking so hard that her knees just wouldn't hold her up." Chris said and Joe nodded.

"Babe can you stand here while I go get my bag?"

"Yeah." Nessa replied and he quickly disappeared into the locker room. "Thank you guys."

"It's no problem sweetie." Eric stated, hugging her. She gave them all a hug just as Joe came back out of the locker room.

"You ready to go Ness?"

"Yeah, please." He took her hand and led her out of the arena so they could go home and he could help calm her down.


	53. Chapter 53

**A/N: It is with much regret that I say that this will be the last chapter of "Miss Me Baby". I've simply lost interest in the story but that doesn't mean I have lost interest in Joe because that will simply NEVER happen. It's just that I have two other stories ("Enter Sandman" & "Love Song For A Vampire") that are taking up my time and interest. I do want to thank everyone for the reviews I have gotten for this story, without you I wouldn't have had the drive to take it as far as I did and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for that. Now on to the last and final chapter! Please review and let me know what you think !**

Nessa woke up the next morning to find that Joe wasn't in bed with her but there was a note on his pillow addressed to her. She smiled and reached out to grab it, opened it and was confused by what she read.

_Ness, _

_Look on the floor beside the bed and follow where it goes._

_Love, _

_Joe_

Not understanding completely what he meant she looked over the side of the bed and gasped when she saw rose petals strung from the bed out to the hall. _What in the world is he doing?_ Nessa thought as she got out of bed and put her robe on that Joe had bought her. Knowing that she had complete faith and trust in her husband she followed the rose petals out the door and saw that they led downstairs. With a smile on her face Nessa walked downstairs and her mouth dropped at the sight before her. Joe had covered the windows with black and red curtains so the room would be dark then he lit the whole living room up with candles as he stood in the middle of the room smiling at her.

"Morning babe."

"Joe what is...all this?" Nessa asked, walking over to him and giving him a quick kiss.

"Well, I knew how much you were worried about me last night and I also know that you had nightmares for most of the night because of it so I thought I would do something special for you. Why...don't you like it?"

"Like it? Baby I love it, nobody has ever done anything like this for me before."

"I'm glad I could be the first one then." Joe said, smiling.

"The only one...ever." She whispered, tangling her fingers in his short brown hair and pulling him down for a passionate kiss. "I love you Joe."

"I love you too Ness but this isn't everything, come on." Joe took her hand and led her out to the kitchen where he had prepared a full breakfast that made Nessa's mouth water by just looking at it.

"Baby this is too much." Nessa gasped, tears coming to her eyes and he shook his head.

"Nothing is ever too much for you." He pulled out her chair and helped her sit down then Nessa watched him as he served up their breakfast.

"Joe I..." She trailed off, her voice cracking with emotion as she quickly wiped away a few stray tears.

"What is it babe?" Joe questioned.

"I just want you to know that I love you with all my heart, you've given me so much since we first got together and there's nothing that I could ever do to even begin to show you how thankful I am to you for that. We were put through hell in the beginning but somehow we found our way through it and managed to get where we are today which is something that I thank god for each and every day. You mean the world to me and for me to stand beside you as your wife is the best thing that I could ever ask for."

"Ness you know I love you too and as far as what happened when we first met...I wish to god I could take that back more than anything."

"I don't." Nessa stated and Joe looked at her in shock.

"Why?"

"Because I think it happening made us a lot stronger when we got back together, it showed us that no matter what the situation our love is strong enough to get through it." She explained causing him to smirk.

"I guess I just didn't think of it that way. You know that you mean more to me than anything, right?" He asked and Nessa nodded, a blush slowly making its way to her cheeks. "You're my wife now and nothing is going to change that or how I feel about you. I love you more than I have ever loved anyone else and you've stuck by me through injuries, through my jealousy and through my bad temper."

"Jealousy and a bad temper are fucking sexy on you Joe." Nessa giggled and he laughed. "What do you think attracted me to you in the first place besides my thinking that you're the sexiest man I've ever seen? It was your intensity...you're so intense and passionate about things that you love whether it's wrestling, your family, our friends or me. That's something that took me a while to get used to but once I did I knew it was something that I couldn't live without."

"Vanessa Michelle Seannoa I want you to know that I will love you until the day that I die."

"I know that and I will love you the same Joe Seannoa." She replied, getting up and walking over to him. Joe pulled her in his lap and kissed her. "We're here now and this is where we'll stay forever."


End file.
